Liberal Dictionary English Dictionary
exfoliate [eks-foh-lee-eyt] WORD ORIGIN verb (used with object), ex·fo·li·at·ed, ex·fo·li·at·ing. to throw off in scales, splinters, etc. to remove the surface of (a bone, the skin, etc.) in scales or laminae. verb (used without object), ex·fo·li·at·ed, ex·fo·li·at·ing. to throw off scales or flakes; peel off in thin fragments: The bark of some trees exfoliates. Geology.
- to split or swell into a scaly aggregate, as certain minerals when heated.
- to separate into rudely concentric layers or sheets, as certain rocks during weathering.
Medicine/Medical. to separate and come off in scales, as scaling skin or any structure separating in flakes. Liberaldictionary.com
Origin of exfoliate 1605–15; Late Latin exfoliātus past participle of exfoliāre to strip off leaves. See ex-1, foliate Related formsex·fo·li·a·tive [eks-foh-lee-ey-tiv, -uh-tiv] /ɛksˈfoʊ liˌeɪ tɪv, -ə tɪv/, adjective Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019 British Dictionary definitions for exfoliative exfoliate verb (tr) to wash (a part of the body) with a granular cosmetic preparation in order to remove dead cells from the skin’s surface (of bark, skin, etc) to peel off in (layers, flakes, or scales) (intr) (of rocks or minerals) to shed the thin outermost layer because of weathering or heating (of some minerals, esp mica) to split or cause to split into thin flakesa factory to exfoliate vermiculite Derived Formsexfoliation, nounexfoliative, adjectiveWord Origin for exfoliate C17: from Late Latin exfoliāre to strip off leaves, from Latin folium leaf Collins English Dictionary – Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012 Word Origin and History for exfoliative exfoliate v.
1610s, from Late Latin exfoliatus, past participle of exfoliare “to strip of leaves,” from ex- “off” (see ex-) + folium “leaf” (see folio). Related: Exfoliated; exfoliating.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper exfoliative in Medicine exfoliative [ĕks-fō′lē-ā′tĭv] adj. Marked by exfoliation, desquamation, or profuse scaling. The American Heritage® Stedman’s Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
