exfoliated

verb

past tense of exfoliate
as in shed
to cast (a natural bodily covering or appendage) aside a soap that promises to help me exfoliate all that dry, flaky skin I've apparently been carrying around

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of exfoliated Sebum plugs or product residue get exfoliated away with fine sea salt crystals. — Hanna Wickes, Sacbee.com, 1 Oct. 2026 Apparently, my defenses exfoliated along with my skin. — Mike Albo, Travel + Leisure, 8 June 2026 The outermost layer of skin (epidermis) has been exfoliated, revealing newer, more sensitive layers underneath. — Essence, 8 Jan. 2026 The resulting small crystals (in millimeter sizes) are exfoliated into small flakes for making black phosphorus nanostructures and nanoscale devices. — IEEE Spectrum, 28 June 2016
Recent Examples of Synonyms for exfoliated
  1. shed
  2. peeled
  3. discarded
Verb
  • Against that backdrop, the royal visit signals that Spain is shedding its longstanding reluctance to send its monarchs to the exclaves, Amirah-Fernández said.
    — JOSEPH WILSON, Arkansas Online, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Nagy continued working as an artist in the years afterward, eventually shedding his austere black-and-white collage aesthetic to make colorful paintings and installations in the ’90s.
    — Alex Greenberger, ARTnews.com, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of shed
Verb
  • For everybody else, a website will officially launch that evening, so be sure to keep your eyes peeled on Satenstein’s socials for the link.
    — Irene Kim, Vogue, 6 Oct. 2026
  • Then 10 teens peeled through the historic terminal on electric bikes.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of peeled
Verb
  • Once discarded, these traps also inadvertently capture birds and other wildlife.
    — Louise Parks, Martha Stewart, 8 Oct. 2026
  • Responses with the error were discarded, as were voters who had already been attempted, and quotas were reset.
    — New York Times, New York Times, 3 Oct. 2026
Definition of discarded

Browse Nearby Words

exfoliate
exfoliated
exfoliates
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Exfoliated.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/exfoliated. Accessed 15 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

The Words of the Week - Oct. 16
See More

Popular

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
a cup of tea and a golf ball on tee side by side
Quiz: Sounds Like... Choose the word that sounds like it fits the clue...
See All