skin up
Climb something fast, or scrape the hide off it.
Also called skinned up, skint up.
Updated September 24, 2026
skin up pronunciation
/SKIN up/
Meaning
Two porch-talk senses share the same words. One is shinning up a tree, pole, or fence with your hands and legs when there ain't much to grab. The other is scraping or scuffing a knee, elbow, truck, or tool so the surface looks torn up. Past talk often lands as "skinned up" or the older mountain form "skint up."
How folks use it
- “That boy can skin up a pine like a squirrel.”
- “He fell off the porch and skinned up both elbows.”
Origin and etymology
Comes from the old verb "skin," meaning to strip or scrape a surface. Rural Southern and Appalachian speech stuck "up" on it two ways: for the climb (like shinning a trunk) and for the scrape that leaves something marked. Oral histories from the Carolina mountains use "skinned up" for climbing a tree. "Skint up" shows up as a traditional past form for the scraped sense.
Frequently asked questions
Does skin up mean climb or get scraped?
Both, depending on what you are talking about. A tree or pole usually means climb. A knee or a bumper usually means scraped.