flesh

UK: /ˈflɛʃ/ US: /flɛʃ/ ,(flesh)

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025

flesh /flɛʃ/   n. [uncountable]

1. Anatomy the soft substance of an animal body between the skin and the skeleton, esp. muscular tissue.
2. this substance used as an article of food, usually excluding fish and sometimes fowl;
   meat.
3. the body, esp. as distinguished from the spirit or soul:
   [the + ~] The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.
4. humankind:
   She said that to die was the way of all flesh.
5. Botany the soft, pulpy portion of a fruit or vegetable:
   the flesh of the peach.

v. 

6. flesh out:
   • to give dimension or substance to;
     develop: [ ~ + out + obj]:
     Flesh out your essay with more details.
     [ ~ + obj + out]:
     to flesh the essay out.
   • [no object] to become more fleshy or substantial:
     He had fleshed out considerably over the years.

Idioms

7. Idioms in the flesh, present and alive before one's eyes;
   in person:
   She is even more beautiful in the flesh.
8. Idioms, Informal Terms press the flesh, [Informal.] to shake hands, as with voters during a political campaign.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

flesh  (flesh), n. 

1. Anatomy the soft substance of a human or other animal body, consisting of muscle and fat.
2. Anatomy muscular and fatty tissue.
3. this substance or tissue in animals, viewed as an article of food, usually excluding fish and sometimes fowl;
   meat.
4. fatness;
   weight.
5. the body, esp. as distinguished from the spirit or soul:
   The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.
6. the physical or animal nature of humankind as distinguished from its moral or spiritual nature:
   the needs of the flesh.
7. humankind.
8. living creatures generally.
9. a person's family or relatives.
10. Botany the soft, pulpy portion of a fruit, vegetable, etc., as distinguished from the core, skin, shell, etc.
11. Anatomy the surface of the human body;
    skin:
    A person with tender flesh should not expose it to direct sunlight.
12. See flesh color. 
13. Idioms in the flesh, present and alive before one's eyes;
    in person:
    The movie star looked quite different in the flesh.
14. Idioms pound of flesh, something that strict justice demands is due, but can only be paid with great loss or suffering to the payer.
15. Idioms, Informal Terms press the flesh, [Informal.] to shake hands, as with voters while campaigning:
    The senator is busy as ever pressing the flesh on the campaign trail.

v.t. 

16. to plunge (a weapon) into the flesh.
17. Sport [Hunting.] to feed (a hound or hawk) with flesh in order to make it more eager for the chase. Cf. blood (def. 23).
18. to incite and accustom (persons) to bloodshed or battle by an initial experience.
19. to inflame the ardor or passions of by a foretaste.
20. to overlay or cover (a skeleton or skeletal frame) with flesh or with a fleshlike substance.
21. to give dimension, substance, or reality to (often fol. by out):
    The playwright fleshed out the characters.
22. to remove adhering flesh from (hides), in leather manufacture.
23. [Archaic.] to satiate with flesh or fleshly enjoyments;
    surfeit;
    glut.

• bef. 900; Middle English flesc, Old English flǣsc; cognate with Old Frisian flēsk, Old High German fleisk (German Fleisch), Old Norse flesk bacon

flesh′less, adj. 

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

flesh / flɛʃ/ noun

1. the soft part of the body of an animal or human, esp muscular tissue, as distinct from bone and viscera
2. excess weight; fat
3. the edible tissue of animals as opposed to that of fish or, sometimes, fowl; meat
4. the thick usually soft part of a fruit or vegetable, as distinct from the skin, core, stone, etc
5. the human body and its physical or sensual nature as opposed to the soul or spirit
   Related adjective(s): carnal
6. humankind in general
7. animate creatures in general
8. one's own family; kin (esp in the phrase one's own flesh and blood)
9. a colour resembling any shade of human skin
10. in the flesh ⇒ in person; actually present
11. press the flesh ⇒ to shake hands, usually with large numbers of people, esp in political campaigning

verb

1. (transitive) to stimulate the hunting instinct of (hounds or falcons) by giving them small quantities of raw flesh
2. to accustom or incite to bloodshed or battle by initial experience
3. to fatten; fill out

Etymology: Old English flǣsc; related to Old Norse flesk ham, Old High German fleisk meat, flesh