strip to

strip to (something)

1. To remove all or nearly all one's clothes, leaving only bare skin or some minimal articles or levels of clothing. She stripped to her undergarments and jumped into the lake. I had to strip to my boxers for the physical exam. We all stripped to the skin before stepping into the hot tub.

2. To remove someone else's clothes, leaving only bare skin or some minimal articles or levels of clothing. In this usage, a noun or pronoun is used between "strip" and "down." I had to strip Daniel to his underwear in order to wash all that muck off him. The guards stripped the prisoner to his socks to make sure he didn't have any weapons or contraband on him.

3. To remove all of the clothes above a certain point on one's body, typically one's waist. She stripped to the waist so the doctor could examine her heartbeat and breathing.

4. To remove all of the clothes someone is wearing above a certain point on their body, typically the waist. In this usage, a noun or pronoun is used between "strip" and "down." They stripped me to the waist so that the chemicals on my shirt wouldn't burn my skin.

See also: strip

strip to something

to take off one's clothing down to a particular level, usually to one's skin, the waist, or some euphemistic way of expressing nudity or near nudity. Tom stripped to the waist and continued to labor in the hot sun. Tom stripped to the bare essentials and got ready to be examined by the doctor.

See also: strip