scale off
When small hard pieces break off from a surface and fall away, like old paint or dry skin.
Meanings
(Intransitive) To fall away from a surface in small, flat pieces or flakes.
"After years of rain and sun, the paint began to scale off the old wooden fence."
(Transitive) To remove something by scraping or chipping it away in flakes.
"The plumber scaled off the mineral deposits that had built up inside the pipe."
(Medicine/Biology) Of skin or a similar surface: to shed in dry, flaky layers.
"Her skin began to scale off after a bad sunburn."
Used in contexts involving skin conditions (psoriasis, sunburn), geology (rock erosion), and surface deterioration (paint, rust). More common in British English.
Commonly used with
Forms
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