peel

peel¹

—peelable, adj.

/peel/, v.t.

1. to strip (something) of its skin, rind, bark, etc.: to peel an orange.

2. to strip (the skin, rind, bark, paint, etc.) from something: to peel paint from a car.

3. Croquet. to cause (another player's ball) to go through a wicket.

v.i.

4. (of skin, bark, paint, etc.) to come off; become separated.

5. to lose the skin, rind, bark, paint, etc.

6. Informal. to undress.

7. Metall. (of a malleable iron casting) to lose, or tend to lose, the outer layer.

8. keep one's eyes peeled, Informal. to watch closely or carefully; be alert: Keep your eyes peeled for a gas station.

9. peel off,

a. to remove (the skin, bark, etc.) or be removed: The old skin peeled off.

b. Aeron. to leave a flying formation of aircraft with a banking turn, usually from one end of an echelon.

c. Informal. to turn off or leave (a road): We peeled off the highway onto a dirt road.

d. to remove (clothing) in a swift upward or downward motion.

n.

10. the skin or rind of a fruit, vegetable, etc.

11. Metall. the presence of a brittle outer layer on a malleable iron casting.

[bef. 1100; ME pelen, OE pilian to strip, skin < L pilare to remove hair, deriv. of pilus hair. See PILL²]

Syn. 1. PEEL, PARE agree in meaning to remove the skin or rind from something. PEEL means to pull or strip off the natural external covering or protection of something: to peel an orange, a potato. PARE is used of trimming off chips, flakes, or superficial parts from something, as well as of cutting off the skin or rind: to pare the nails; to pare a potato.

peel²

/peel/, n.

1. a shovellike implement for putting bread, pies, etc., into the oven or taking them out.

2. Metall. a long, shovellike iron tool for charging an open-hearth furnace.

[1350-1400; ME pele < MF < L pala spade. See PALETTE]

peel³

/peel/, n.

a small fortified tower for residence or for use during an attack, common in the border counties of England and Scotland in the 16th century.

Also, pele.

[1250-1300; ME pele fortress < AF pel stockade, MF pel stake < L palus stake. See PALE²]

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▪ Isle of Man, British Isles

      town on the west coast of the Isle of Man (Man, Isle of), one of the British Isles, on Peel Bay at the mouth of the River Neb, which forms the harbour. On the west side of the river mouth is Patrick's Isle, connected with the main island by a causeway; it is occupied by the ruined keep and guardroom of an ancient castle (the name Peel is Celtic for “fort”). Nearby are the remains of the cathedral of St. German. There are also ruins of the bishop's palace, palace of the lords of Man, and an ancient round tower. St. Patrick (Patrick, Saint) is said to have founded the first church on Man and a small chapel dedicated to him probably dates from the 8th or 10th century. Peel has a long-established fishing industry and is a seaside resort. Pop. (1981) 3,688.

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