corium

hide, skin

1 / 1

Show the literal skin-scraping sense: a woman seated beside a rough concrete step examines a fresh, shallow abrasion on her shin, with superficial scraped skin clearly visible and no graphic injury.

noun

excoriation

ik-skor-ee-AY-shun/ɪkˌskɔːriˈeɪʃn/

Scraping away or damaging the skin.

Etymology

exLatinout, away; also thoroughly

+coriLatinhide, skin

+ationLatinan action, process, or result

The pieces describe stripping skin off, the literal basis of excoriation as skin damage. The figurative meaning turns that flaying into severe verbal criticism.

Full entry

Related word entries

excoriation