flays

verb

present tense third-person singular of flay
1
as in scolds
to criticize (someone) severely or angrily especially for personal failings her husband flayed her constantly for her incessant shopping

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in peels
to remove the natural covering of flayed their kill right there in the forest, taking both the meat and the skin home

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for flays
  1. scolds
  2. peels
  3. lectures
  4. barks
  5. reprimands
  6. blames
  7. criticizes
Verb
  • Someone else scolds the offender.
    — Judith Martin, Mercury News, 16 June 2026
  • Inspired by This Is Spinal Tap, Cundieff makes quick work of lambasting the casual misogyny and homophobia ingrained in hardcore rap, but also of the media scolds unable to parse the message of the music.
    — Lauren Huff, Entertainment Weekly, 3 June 2026
Definition of scolds
Verb
  • Paint peels away from the bottom of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, in Washington, DC, on June 23, 2026.
    — Kevin Breuninger,Terri Cullen, CNBC, 31 July 2026
  • The only delightful new practical shot is when Johnson peels a banana with his teeth.
    — Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 9 July 2026
Definition of peels
Verb
  • Khimasia is an independent curator who currently lectures at Rutgers University.
    — News Desk, Artforum, 27 July 2026
  • In fact, they were borne out of more practical considerations, said Elizabeth Morton, a planning and urban design consultant who lectures at George Washington University.
    — Rachel Treisman, NPR, 9 July 2026
Definition of lectures
Verb
  • The dog searches, finds the person, barks, and receives the toy as his reward.
    — Tibisay Zea, Christian Science Monitor, 15 July 2026
  • Early sips are big on citrus (specifically pomelo and lemon) and herbal tea, alongside lighter elements of cedar and birch barks.
    — David Thomas Tao, Forbes.com, 8 July 2026
Definition of barks
Verb
  • The emperor reprimands her for being late for the rainmaking ritual.
    — Lavender Au, The Dial, 30 June 2026
  • His supervisor appears as a ticket conductor and reprimands him for doing nothing.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 15 Jan. 2026
Definition of reprimands
Verb
  • Her filing repeatedly and pointedly blames the Interior Department for providing her office with shoddy information.
    — Kevin Breuninger,Terri Cullen, CNBC, 31 July 2026
  • And according to several sources, Meghan blames some of these challenges to her husband.
    — Allison DeGrushe, StyleCaster, 28 July 2026
Definition of blames
Verb
  • That works beautifully against outsiders, and outsiders are most of who criticizes us.
    — Sachin H. Jain, Forbes.com, 31 July 2026
  • Mike Collins criticizes Jon Ossoff for relying on out-of-state donations.
    — Adam Beam, AJC.com, 27 July 2026
Definition of criticizes
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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flaying
flays
fleabag
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Cite this Entry

“Flays.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/flays. Accessed 6 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on flays

Nglish: Translation of flays for Spanish Speakers

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