Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
to desquamate

to desquamate

1 9.9
To come off in thin flakes like skin after a sunburn
  • verb
  • /dɛsˈkwɑːmeɪt/
  • Specialized
: descamarse
  • After a sunburn, my skin began to desquamate, leaving behind soft, smooth skin.
  • desquamated cells
  • desquamated epithelial

Examples

  • However, the external auditory canal might be so filled with desquamated epithelium, cerumen, and mucopurulence that medications cannot effectively reach the target tissues.

    Academic text (2004)

  • They described this as allergic mucin, which consisted of degenerating eosinophils, desquamated respiratory epithelial cells, and Charcot-Leyden crystals.

    Academic text (2004)

  • Cerumen is a mixture of secretions produced by the sebaceous and ceruminous glands and substances such as desquamated epithelial cells, shed hairs, and foreign bodies.

    Academic text (2006)

  • When the old paint started to desquamate, I knew it was time to repaint the house.

  • As the winter season ends, animals desquamate their thick winter coats in preparation for spring.

Synonyms

to exfoliate
vsto desquamate
11 6.2

To come off in thin layers, like peeling bark

is a medical term used mainly for body tissue
to peel off
vsto desquamate
5 3.9

To come away in strips because of age or damage

refers to natural tissue shedding rather than wear or damage removal
to descale
vsto desquamate
1 5.3

To remove scales from a fish or hard white build-up inside kettles

describes natural thin flake shedding from living tissue rather than active scraping

How Flaky

to flake
11 2.6
to desquamate
  • Specialized
1 9.9
to peel
41 3.0
to shed
35 3.5

Surface Forms

desquamate infinitive
desquamated past
desquamated past participle
desquamating present participle
desquamates third person singular

Morphology

desquamate = squamate (opaque) = de + squam + ate

Although 'de-' is a productive reversative prefix, the base 'squamate' (and the root 'squam-') are technical Latin-derived forms unfamiliar to most learners, so the relation is not helpful for guessing the meaning.

Etymology

Desquamate comes from the Latin parts de- meaning 'off' and squama meaning 'scale' like a fish scale. So to desquamate is for skin to 'come off' in thin 'scales' or flakes, which is why the word describes peeling or shedding skin.