to throw off in scales, splinters, etc.

to remove the surface of (a bone, the skin, etc.) in scales or laminae.

to throw off scales or flakes; peel off in thin fragments

The bark of some trees exfoliates.

Geology .

to split or swell into a scaly aggregate, as certain minerals when heated.

to separate into rudely concentric layers or sheets, as certain rocks during weathering.

Medicine/Medical . to separate and come off in scales, as scaling skin or any structure separating in flakes.

verb

desquamate , doff , flake off , scale off , shed