Definition

Verb: - To grow new skin over an injury, forming a protective covering as part of the healing process.

Usage

This verb is used specifically to describe the biological process of healing, where new skin cells form to cover a wound, cut, or other injury. It is an intransitive verb, meaning it does not take a direct object; the injury itself is the implied subject.

Examples

Advanced Usage

• Metaphorical Use: While primarily literal, it can be used metaphorically to describe a superficial covering or the process of something becoming superficially healed or sealed over, often ignoring deeper issues.
  • The political divisions were papered over, but they never truly healed; they just skinned over.

Variants and Related Words

• Skin (noun): The outer covering of a body.
• Skin (verb): To remove the skin from something.
• Overskin (noun, rare): An outer layer of skin.

Synonyms

• Heal over
• Cicatrize (to form a scar)
• Granulate (to form granulation tissue, a step before skin covers a wound)

Related Phrasal Verbs

• Heal up: To recover from an injury.
  • The scrape will heal up in a few days.
• Scab over: To form a hard, protective crust of dried blood and plasma over a wound.
  • The wound scabbed over before it began to skin over.

Related Idioms

• By the skin of one's teeth: To barely succeed or escape.
  • He passed the exam by the skin of his teeth.
• Get under someone's skin: To irritate or annoy someone deeply.
  • His constant whistling really gets under my skin.

Verb

1. grow new skin over an injury