Meaning & use
excoriating
Last updated
Extremely harsh or scathing in criticism; also literally, causing the skin to be stripped or scraped off.
See it in a sentence
The critic wrote an excoriating review that ended the play's brief run.
Harsh chemicals in the cleaner were excoriating the skin on her hands.
A note on using this word
From the Latin "excoriare" (to flay), the literal sense of stripping skin gave rise to the figurative meaning of criticism so harsh it feels like it strips away one's dignity.
Words with a similar meaning
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Words with an opposite meaning
complimentarygentle
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