peel
verb (used with object)
to strip (something) of its skin, rind, bark, etc..
had peeled
-
past perfectof peel.past perfect
Used to express a completed action that took place before another specific past action occurred.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Gail took over the company’s financials, swiftly gaining the trust of their creditors and negotiating payment plans that kept the business running until they had peeled themselves out of short-term debt.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
Their grave had once had plastic lettering with their names on it, but those had peeled and fallen away into the grass around them, leaving only a ghostly outline from where they used to be.
From Slate ● Oct. 24, 2024
On Aug. 23, 1944, while escorting B-17s over Czechoslovakia, Mr. McGee, by then a captain, had peeled off to engage a Luftwaffe squadron and, after a fierce dogfight, shot down a Focke-Wulf Fw 190.
From New York Times ● Jan. 16, 2022
He said a small group had peeled away from the march and congregated around the statue after the majority of the crowd had passed by.
From BBC ● Dec. 13, 2021
Most of the paint on the clapboard siding had peeled off long before, and the sagging roof over the porch looked ready to cave in with the next strong wind.
From "Mississippi Trial, 1955" by Chris Crowe
