flay

play

verb \ ˈflā \

Definition of flay

transitive verb

1 :to strip off the skin or surface of :skin

The hunter flayed the rabbit and prepared it for cooking.

2 :to criticize harshly :excoriate

He was flayed by the media for his controversial comments.

3 :lash 1b

the wind whipped up to gale fury, flaying his face
—Richard Kent

See flay defined for English-language learners

See flay defined for kids

Examples of flay in a Sentence

her husband flayed her constantly for her incessant shopping
flayed their kill right there in the forest, taking both the meat and the skin home

Recent Examples of flay from the Web

In additional to their campaign of terror against African Americans and ethnic minorities, the Klan broke up stills in the name of prohibition and flayed and flogged adulterers in the name of traditional family values.

— terence mcardle, Washington Post, "The day 30,000 white supremacists in KKK robes marched in the nation’s capital," 17 Aug. 2017
The tradition of progressives flaying Democratic presidents for betraying the spirit of the New Deal goes all the way back to the New Deal itself.

— jonathan chait, Daily Intelligencer, "How ‘Neoliberalism’ Became The Left’s Favorite Insult Of Liberals," 16 July 2017
When various lawmakers lit into John Stumpf at a congressional hearing last fall, each seemed to find a fresh way to flay the now-former CEO of Wells Fargo for failing to stop some 5,000 employees from setting up phony accounts for customers.

— jerry useem, The Atlantic, "Power Causes Brain Damage," 18 June 2017
The caller reported a man talking to himself, staring at girls and flaying his arms everywhere.

— staff report, Orange County Register, "Crime log for Mission Viejo, May 31-June 6," 6 June 2017
For that, Pelosi was flayed on Twitter by left-wing accounts.

— the washington post, The Denver Post, "Impeachment chatter ratchets up in halls of the Capitol," 17 May 2017
Several used flattened bicycle tire tubes, flayed and hung, referencing her father’s factory, which had gone bankrupt.

— nikil saval, New York Times, "The Ghosts of Turin," 10 May 2017
Her stories were perfectly attuned to the extremist ideas for which Bannon has become celebrated and despised; Bannon and Hahn even co-wrote a story that flayed Paul Ryan.

— peter maass, The Intercept, "White Fear in the White House: Young Bannon Disciple Julia Hahn Is a Case Study in Extremism," 7 May 2017
On her right side, the skin was flayed off, probably as the porpoise struggled while drowning in the net.

— rod nordland, New York Times, "Only Captivity Will Save the Vaquita, Experts Say," 27 Apr. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'flay.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.