to remove or be removed by peeling
slang (intr) to undress
(intr) (of an aircraft) to turn away as by banking, and leave a formation
slang to go away or cause to go away
Remove an outer layer of skin, bark, paint, or the like; also, come off in thin strips or pieces. For example, Peeling off birch bark can kill the tree , or Paint was peeling off the walls . [Late 1500s]
Remove or separate, as in Helen peeled off her gloves and got to work , or Al peeled off a ten-dollar bill and gave it to the driver . [First half of 1900s]
Also, peel away . Depart from a group, as in Ruth peeled off from the pack of runners and went down a back road . This expression originated in air force jargon during World War II and was used for an airplane or pilot that left flight formation, a sight that suggested the peeling of skin from a banana.
First recorded in 1935–40; adj. use of verb phrase peel off
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The team say that the pH-sensitive adhesive system could serve as a novel, and recyclable, middle ground between structural adhesives with fixed chemical bonds and peel-off adhesive films that bond using physical interactions.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 13, 2023
You can also have a peel-off backing to make your photo print a sticker.
From The Verge ● Jul. 31, 2022
But we all carry a stash of peel-off faces in our pockets, one for every occasion, just like Tom Cruise in Mission: Impossible.
From The Guardian ● Jul. 21, 2011
But that defiant-sounding message is printed on a peel-off sticker.
From Time Magazine Archive
Well," said he, after a comfortable pull at an expensive-looking cigar, "sixteen seventy-five is quite a lively little peel-off for a dinner for only two.
From Susan Lenox: Her Fall and Rise by Phillips, David Graham
Soon after completion of the work, the coating began to peel off and algae turned the pool's water a mucky green -- setbacks the president has blamed on vandals, without providing evidence.
From Barron's ● Jul. 2, 2026
The new coating also began to peel off the surface.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 2, 2026
But his various assistants gradually peel off one by one and head back to the US as they realise Kelly is serious about potentially giving up his career.
From BBC ● Aug. 28, 2025
The league is expected to open the deal up in its seventh year, potentially allowing streaming suitors to further drive up the price or peel off some of the games in the broadcast package.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 8, 2025
My remaining scabs are starting to peel off.
From "Catching Fire" by Suzanne Collins
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
