1
general::
Phrase(s): peel off (from something)
[for one or more airplanes] to separate from a group of airplanes. • The lead plane peeled off from the others, and soon the rest followed. • The lead plane peeled off and dived into the clouds., Phrase(s): peel something off ((of) something) [and] peel something off from something
to remove the outside surface layer from something. (Of is usually retained before pronouns.) • She carefully peeled the skin off the apple. • She peeled off the apple’s skin., Phrase(s): peel off ((of) something)
[for a surface layer] to come loose and fall away from something. (Of is usually retained before pronouns.) • The paint is beginning to peel off the garage. • The paint is peeling off.
McGrawhill's American Idioms And Phrasal Verbs
2
general::
1. Remove an outer layer of skin, bark, paint, or the like; also, come off in thin strips or pieces. For example, Peeling off birch bark can kill the tree, or Paint was peeling off the walls. [Late 1500s] 2. Remove or separate, as in Helen peeled off her gloves and got to work, or Al peeled off a ten-dollar bill and gave it to the driver. [First half of 1900s] 3. Also, peel away. Depart from a group, as in Ruth peeled off from the pack of runners and went down a back road. This expression originated in air force jargon during World War II and was used for an airplane or pilot that left flight formation, a sight that suggested the peeling of skin from a banana.
American Heritage Idioms