Strip the skin off (4)
I believe the answer is:
flay
'strip the skin off' is the definition.
(synonyms)
This is the entire clue.
(Other definitions for flay that I've seen before include "Strip skin from (a body)" , "Fiercely criticise" , "Savagely criticise; skin" , "Strip the skin from (a carcass)" , "thrash" .)