• (v. t.) To prepare a skeleton of; also, to reduce, as a leaf, to its skeleton.
Skel'e·ton·ize transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Skeletonized ; present participle & verbal noun Skeletonizing .] To prepare a skeleton of; also, to reduce, as a leaf, to its skeleton. Pop. Sci. Monthly. 
To remove leaf tissue between the veins, leaving the network of veins intact.