skin

Compared meaning: the skin or fur of an animal (noun).

比较义项：动物（或人）身体表面的皮／兽皮（名词）。

• hide

  Hide refers to the thick, tough skin of a large animal such as cattle or elephants, usually thought of as raw material for leather; it is almost never used for a person's skin.

  hide 指大型动物（如牛、大象）厚而坚韧的皮，通常被视为制革的原料；几乎不用来指人的皮肤。

  The tannery turns thick cow hides into sturdy leather boots.

  制革厂把厚厚的牛皮加工成结实的皮靴。

• skin 本词

  Skin is the general, neutral word for the outer covering of any person's or animal's body, whether alive or as material; it has no special link to fur or leather-making.

  skin 是泛指人或动物身体表层的中性词，既可指活体的皮肤，也可指作为材料的皮，和毛皮或制革没有特别的联系。

  A snake sheds its old skin several times a year.

  蛇每年要蜕好几次皮。

• pelt

  Pelt is an animal's skin still covered in fur, especially from small game like rabbits or foxes; it evokes hunting, trapping or the fur trade, not leather-making.

  pelt 指仍带着毛的动物皮，尤指兔子、狐狸等小型猎物的皮，让人联想到狩猎、诱捕或毛皮贸易，而非制革。

  The trapper sold a soft fox pelt to the fur trader.

  捕猎者把一张柔软的狐狸毛皮卖给了毛皮商人。

Hide, skin and pelt all can mean an animal's skin, but they differ. Hide is thick skin used for leather. Skin is the general, neutral word for a body's outer covering. Pelt is skin covered in fur. Hide can mean 'conceal'; pelt can mean 'throw'.

这三个词都可以指某种“皮”，但侧重不同：skin 是最普通、中性的说法，hide 强调厚而坚韧、可制革的兽皮，pelt 强调带毛的兽皮，常与狩猎、皮草贸易相关。注意：hide 另有动词义“躲藏”，pelt 另有动词义“（用雪球等）投掷”，这里均不作比较。

Compared meaning: to remove the outer skin or covering (verb).

比较义项：剥掉外皮（动词）。

• skin 本词

  Skin usually means stripping the tough outer layer off an animal or a food like a potato, and can sound more forceful or graphic than peel.

  skin通常指剥去动物或土豆等食物坚韧的外皮，语气比peel更强烈，甚至带有一些血腥感。

  The hunter skinned the rabbit before cooking it over the fire.

  猎人在把兔子放到火上烹煮之前先剥了它的皮。

• peel

  Peel is the everyday word for removing a thin outer layer from fruit or vegetables, usually with fingers or a small knife, common in cooking instructions.

  peel是日常用词，指用手指或小刀削去水果或蔬菜的薄皮，常见于烹饪说明中。

  Could you peel the apples before we bake them into a pie?

  在把苹果烤成派之前，你能削一下苹果皮吗？

Both mean removing an outer covering. Skin strips a tough layer off an animal or a hard food like a potato, sounding forceful. Peel is the common word for removing thin skin from fruit or vegetables. The nouns skin and peel are not compared here.

这两个词都表示“剥去外皮”的动作，含义相近但侧重不同：skin多用于剥掉动物或土豆等坚硬食物的外皮，语气较强烈甚至带有血腥感；peel则是日常用语，多指削去水果、蔬菜等软皮，语气更轻松。这里不比较skin作名词表示“皮肤”的用法，也不比较peel作名词表示“果皮”的用法。