Meaning & use
skin
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Meanings
nouncountable or uncountable
The outer layer of tissue that covers the body of a person or animal.
Grammar: Often uncountable when referring to the material, but countable when referring to a specific animal's skin.
Patterns
- fair skin
- skin care
She has very fair skin that burns easily in the sun.
The snake sheds its skin several times a year.
nouncountable or uncountable
The outer covering of a fruit or vegetable.
Grammar: Usually uncountable when talking about the material, countable when referring to a piece.
Patterns
- potato skin
- apple skin
He likes to eat the skin of a baked potato.
You should wash the apple skin before eating it.
nouncountable or uncountable
A thin layer that forms on the surface of a liquid, such as milk or paint.
Grammar: Often singular with 'a' or 'the': a skin formed on the pudding.
Patterns
- skin on milk
- form a skin
A skin formed on the hot chocolate as it cooled.
Remove the skin from the paint before stirring.
verbtransitive
To remove the skin from an animal, fruit, or vegetable.
Grammar: Takes an object: skin a rabbit.
Patterns
- skin an animal
- skin a tomato
The hunter skinned the deer before cooking it.
You can skin tomatoes by putting them in boiling water first.
Word forms
| plural | skins |
|---|---|
| third person singular | skins |
| past tense | skinned |
| past participle | skinned |
| -ing form | skinning |
Common combinations
- fair skin
- People with fair skin should use sunscreen.
- skin cancer
- Too much sun can cause skin cancer.
- skin deep
- Beauty is only skin deep.
- by the skin of your teeth
- He passed the exam by the skin of his teeth.
Synonyms and how they differ
- hide
- Hide refers to the tough skin of a large animal, often used for leather; skin is the general term for human or animal covering.
- peel
- Peel is the outer covering of a fruit or vegetable; skin is also used but peel is more common for thick coverings like oranges.
- epidermis
- Epidermis is the technical term for the outer layer of skin; skin is the everyday word.
Word family
- skinny adjective
- Very thin.
- skinless adjective
- Having no skin, as in skinless chicken.
- skinned adjective
- Having a specified kind of skin, as in dark-skinned.
Commonly confused: skin or hide?
skin vs hide
Hide is the skin of a large animal, especially when used for leather. Skin is the general word for the covering of any person or animal.
Practice
The outer covering of a fruit, such as an apple, is called its ______.
Choose one answer.
Skin is the general word for the outer covering of a fruit. Peel is also used but often for thick coverings like oranges; hide is for large animals, and bark is for trees.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “skin”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.