Meaning & use
excoriate
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Meanings
verbtransitiveformal
To criticize someone or something very harshly in public.
Grammar: Takes an object, often followed by for: excoriate the mayor for the delay.
Patterns
- excoriate someone for something
- excoriate someone as something
Reviewers excoriated the film for its weak plot.
The editorial excoriated the council over the budget.
verbtransitivemedical
To scrape or wear away the skin, causing a raw sore.
Grammar: Takes an object such as skin.
Patterns
- excoriate something
Constant rubbing had excoriated the skin on his heel.
The rash was excoriated from scratching.
Word forms
| third person singular | excoriates |
|---|---|
| past tense | excoriated |
| past participle | excoriated |
| -ing form | excoriating |
Common combinations
- publicly excoriate
- The senator publicly excoriated the agency.
- excoriated by the press
- He was excoriated by the press.
- excoriate for failing
- They excoriated her for failing to act.
- excoriated skin
- Excoriated skin needs careful dressing.
Synonyms and how they differ
- castigate
- Close in meaning; stresses punishing with words.
- slam
- Informal; a shorter word for harsh criticism.
- denounce
- Means to condemn openly as wrong, with less sense of bitter attack.
Opposites
Word family
- excoriation noun
- severe criticism, or a raw skin injury
Commonly confused: excoriate or exonerate? excoriate or scorch?
excoriate vs exonerate
Exonerate means to clear of blame, nearly the opposite of excoriate.
excoriate vs scorch
Scorch means to burn the surface; it is not about criticism.
Practice
The columnist ___ the minister for ignoring the flood warnings.
Choose one answer.
Excoriated means attacked with harsh criticism. Exonerated is a tempting sound-alike but means cleared of blame.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “excoriate”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.