What does "skin" mean?
Skin: The hide of an animal, separated from the body, whether green, dry, or tanned; especially, that of a small animal, as a calf, sheep, or goat.
Additional senses
- 2.A vessel made of skin, used for holding liquids. See Bottle, 1. "Skins of wine." Tennyson.
- 3.The bark or husk of a plant or fruit; the exterior coat of fruits and plants.
- 4.(Naut.) (a) That part of a sail, when furled, which remains on the outside and covers the whole. Totten. (b) The covering, as of planking or iron plates, outside the framing, forming the sides and bottom of a vessel; the shell; also, a lining inside the framing. Skin friction, Skin resistance (Naut.), the friction, or resistance, caused by the tendency of water to adhere to the immersed surface (skin) of a vessel. -- Skin graft (Surg.), a small portion of skin used in the process of grafting. See Graft, v. t., 2. -- Skin moth (Zoöl.), any insect which destroys the prepared skins of animals, especially the larva of Dermestes and Anthrenus. -- Skin of the teeth, nothing, or next to nothing; the least possible hold or advantage. Job xix.
- 5.-- Skin wool, wool taken from dead sheep.
- 6.To strip off the skin or hide of; to flay; to peel; as, to skin an animal.
- 7.To cover with skin, or as with skin; hence, to cover superficially. It will but skin and film the ulcerous place. Shak.
- 8.To strip of money or property; to cheat. [Slang]
- 9.To become covered with skin; as, a wound skins over.
- 10.To produce, in recitation, examination, etc., the work of another for one's own, or to use in such exercise cribs, memeoranda, etc., which are prohibited. [College Cant, U.S.]
Sources
- Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).
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- Published: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00 · Modified: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00