What does flay mean?
Flay means (transitive, UK dialectal, Northern England, Scotland) To cause to fly; put to flight; drive off (by frightening)..
Flay
/fleɪ/ · verb
Meaning
(transitive, UK dialectal, Northern England, Scotland) To cause to fly; put to flight; drive off (by frightening)..
Definitions by Sense
- (transitive, UK dialectal, Northern England, Scotland) To cause to fly; put to flight; drive off (by frightening).
- (transitive, UK dialectal, Northern England, Scotland) To frighten; scare; terrify.
- (intransitive, UK dialectal, Northern England, Scotland) To be fear-stricken.
- (UK dialectal, Northern England, Scotland) A fright; a scare.
- (UK dialectal, Northern England, Scotland) Fear; a source of fear; a formidable matter; a fearsome or repellent-looking individual.
- To strip the skin off; to skin.
- To lash or whip.
Example Sentences
If they'd let me have my way, I could have flayed him into shape
The farmer flayed him as he had the bear, and so he had both bear-skin and fox-skin.
Synonyms for flay
Antonyms for flay
Related Words
Word Forms
- flays
- flaying
- flayed
- fla
- fley
- flee
- fly
- fleg
- flae
- flea
- flaid
- flew
- flain
Usage Notes
Choose a synonym only when it preserves the intended meaning, tone, and grammar of the full sentence.
Practice and Learn More
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a synonym for flay?
Common synonyms include fleece, flense, skin.
What is the opposite of flay?
The opposite depends on the specific sense.
How do you use flay in a sentence?
If they'd let me have my way, I could have flayed him into shape
Sources & Attribution
FreeDictionaryAPI.com / Wiktionary · Original source · CC BY-SA 4.0
Dictionary data is provided by FreeDictionaryAPI.com and sourced from Wiktionary under its stated license.