flay
Remove the hide
To flay is to strip the skin from a body, typically by cutting or whipping.
The image is visceral—executioners flayed criminals, hunters flay game.
Figuratively, to flay someone is to criticize them harshly, as if peeling away their defenses: The critics flayed his latest novel.
A flaying review leaves nothing intact.
Scold with ferocity
- excoriateSeverely criticize or censure
- castigateReprimand severely
- denouncePublicly declare wrongdoing
- condemnDeclare wrong or guilty
berate · censure · rebuke · upbraid · reproach · chastise · vilify · blast
Removing outer covering
- hideConceal or pelt
- peltFur-bearing animal skin
- leatherTanned animal skin
- dermisLiving tissue under epidermis
epidermis · taxidermy · tanning · butchering · carcass · fur · stripping · knife
Extreme physical or emotional pain
- tormentSevere prolonged suffering
- sufferingSustained experience of distress
- brutalitySavage, merciless behavior
- crueltyDeliberate harm-causing disposition
sadism · punishment · inquisition · medieval · execution · persecution · savagery · viciousness
lambaste
Scold with ferocity
- excoriateSeverely criticize or censure
- castigateReprimand severely
- denouncePublicly declare wrongdoing
condemn · berate · censure · rebuke · upbraid · reproach · chastise · vilify · blast · slam
skinning
Removing outer covering
dermis · epidermis · taxidermy · tanning · butchering · carcass · fur · stripping · knife · curing
agony
Extreme physical or emotional pain
- tormentSevere prolonged suffering
- sufferingSustained experience of distress
- brutalitySavage, merciless behavior
cruelty · sadism · punishment · inquisition · medieval · execution · persecution · savagery · viciousness · barbarity
stripping
Removing outer layers
husking · barking · decorticating · exfoliating · shucking · denuding · removing · bark · rind