What does « To skin / To strip » mean in the Quran?

Discover the meaning of the word To skin / To strip (سلخ) in the Quran, with 3 verses in which it appears, and a detailed explanation from Al-Raghib al-Asfahani's Mufradat fi gharib al-Qur'an.

سلخ

To skin / To strip

Root: س - ل - خ

Quranic language 3 verses

Updated on 29 May 2026 at 7:00 AM

📖 1 min read

Definition of To skin / To strip

As-salkh: skinning an animal.

One says: I skinned it and it was skinned.

The Almighty says: 'We extract from it the day' (Ya-Sin 37): we strip it of night. 'When the sacred month has passed' (At-Tawba 5): gone and finished.

The metaphor evokes complete removal.

To skin / To strip in the Quran (3)

Meccan: 2 Medinan: 1

Distribution of verses by surah

Al-A'raf 1

At-Tawba 1

Ya-Sin 1

Surah Al-A'raf : 175 Meccan

﴿وَٱتْلُ عَلَيْهِمْ نَبَأَ ٱلَّذِىٓ ءَاتَيْنَٰهُ ءَايَٰتِنَا فَٱنسَلَخَ مِنْهَا فَأَتْبَعَهُ ٱلشَّيْطَٰنُ فَكَانَ مِنَ ٱلْغَاوِينَ﴾

And recite to them, [O Muhammad], the news of him to whom we gave [knowledge of] Our signs, but he detached himself from them; so Satan pursued him, and he became of the deviators.

Surah At-Tawba : 5 Medinan

﴿فَإِذَا ٱنسَلَخَ ٱلْأَشْهُرُ ٱلْحُرُمُ فَٱقْتُلُوا۟ ٱلْمُشْرِكِينَ حَيْثُ وَجَدتُّمُوهُمْ وَخُذُوهُمْ وَٱحْصُرُوهُمْ وَٱقْعُدُوا۟ لَهُمْ كُلَّ مَرْصَدٍ فَإِن تَابُوا۟ وَأَقَامُوا۟ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ وَءَاتَوُا۟ ٱلزَّكَوٰةَ فَخَلُّوا۟ سَبِيلَهُمْ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ﴾

And when the sacred months have passed, then kill the polytheists wherever you find them and capture them and besiege them and sit in wait for them at every place of ambush. But if they should repent, establish prayer, and give zakah, let them [go] on their way. Indeed, Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.

Surah Ya-Sin : 37 Meccan

﴿وَءَايَةٌ لَّهُمُ ٱلَّيْلُ نَسْلَخُ مِنْهُ ٱلنَّهَارَ فَإِذَا هُم مُّظْلِمُونَ﴾

And a sign for them is the night. We remove from it [the light of] day, so they are [left] in darkness.