éplucher

Senses

1. 1.

   to peel

   to remove the skin or outer layer from fruit or vegetables

2. 2.

   to scrutinize; to examine closely

   to look through carefully and critically, often a text or account

Examples

• "Il faut éplucher les pommes de terre avant de les faire cuire."

  You need to peel the potatoes before cooking them.

• "Les journalistes ont épluché le rapport ligne par ligne."

  The journalists scrutinized the report line by line.

• "Elle épluche toujours les contrats avant de les signer."

  She always examines contracts carefully before signing them.

Usage

Common in cooking (literal sense) and formal/journalistic writing (figurative sense). The figurative meaning emphasizes thorough, critical examination and is often used with documents, records, or statements.