
flabby | flabby: adj. 1 limp, loose, lax, flaccid, slack, floppy, sagging, drooping, baggy, pendulous, quaggy, soft: After forty, he began to get a bit flabby around the middle. 2 weak, spineless, feeble, impotent, ineffective, ineffectual: The critics found the characterizations flabby and the plot non-existent.
flag� | flag�: n. 1 banner, ensign, standard, pennant, banneret, pennon, streamer, bunting, jack, gonfalon, vexillum: Our flag was raised over the fort. --v. 2 Often flag down. warn, signal, hail, inform, stop: A workman flagged us down because the bridge was out. 3 mark, tag, label, tab, identify, Brit tick (off), US and Canadian check (off): Flag the supplies you need that are listed here.
flag� | flag�: v. 1 droop, sag, dangle, hang down, swag, festoon: In the doldrums the sails flagged soggily about the masts. 2 weaken, languish, falter, fail, dwindle, fade, deteriorate, waste away, degenerate, die, decline, diminish, decrease, lessen, abate, peter out, taper off, let up, ease (up), subside, slump, fall off, wane, ebb, sink, lag: When he reached eighty, he sometimes complained that his sexual appetite was flagging.
flagrant | flagrant: adj. blatant, brazen, bold, barefaced, audacious, arrant, glaring, outrageous, shocking, shameless, scandalous, atrocious, infamous, notorious, defiant, egregious, obvious, conspicuous, open, complete, out-and-out, utter, flagitious, monstrous, heinous, cruel, villainous, treacherous, nefarious, awful, gross, rank, inconsiderate, scornful, contemptuous; reprehensible; contemptible: Speeding shows a flagrant disregard for the safety of others.
flair | flair: n. 1 talent, ability, aptitude, feel, knack, genius, skill, mind, gift, faculty, propensity, bent, proclivity, facility: He showed a flair for music at an early age. 2 chic, panache, dash, �lan, �clat, style, stylishness, glamour, verve, sparkle, vitality, elegance, taste, Colloq savvy, pizazz or pizzazz, Old-fashioned oomph: She dresses with great flair.
flak | flak: n. flack, criticism, disapproval, censure, abuse, blame, aspersion, complaint(s), disapprobation, condemnation, Colloq brickbats: He took a lot of flak from the press for his comments.
flake | flake: n. 1 snowflake; scale, chip, bit, piece, scrap, particle, tuft, flock, scurf, fragment, shaving, sliver; wafer, lamina, Technical squama: A flake of slate caught him in the eye. --v. 2 Often, flake off. scale, chip, fragment; Technical desquamate, exfoliate: The paint is flaking off on this side. 3 flake out. a collapse, go to or fall asleep, drop off (to sleep), pass out, keel over: After the game, I flaked out on the couch for ten hours. b become flaky, act crazy: He flaked out when he heard the new record.
flamboyant | flamboyant: adj. 1 elaborate, ornamented, ornate, decorated, embellished, baroque, rococo, florid: We chose a flamboyant wallpaper with purple peacocks. 2 extravagant, ostentatious, showy, gaudy, flashy, dazzling, brilliant, splendid, dashing, rakish, swashbuckling, jaunty; high, wide, and handsome: With a flamboyant display of swordsmanship, d''Artagnan dispatched his attacker.
flame | flame: n. 1 fire, blaze; conflagration: The flame began to lick about my feet. 2 passion, fervour, ardour, intensity, warmth, fire, zeal, feverishness, enthusiasm, eagerness: The flame of love is still burning. 3 boyfriend, girlfriend, lover, heartthrob, sweetheart, beau: Linda is an old flame of Trevor''s. --v. 4 burn, blaze, glow, flare: Flaming embers from the chimney set fire to the roof. Here and there civil unrest flamed up in the countryside.
flaming | flaming: adj. obvious, conspicuous, blatant, flagrant, egregious, extravagant, Slang bloody, bleeding, blasted, damned, blooming: That flaming idiot was appointed to the Ministry of Defence!
flammable | flammable: adj. inflammable, combustible, burnable: The warning on the tin says the contents are flammable.
flank | flank: n. 1 side, quarter; loin, haunch: The enemy was about to attack our flank. The pony drew back with trembling flanks. --v. 2 edge, border, line: Armed guards flanked the entrance. 3 skirt, outmanoeuvre, outflank, circle, go (a)round: They have enough troops to flank our forces to the east.
flannel | flannel: n. 1 flattery, humbug, nonsense, blarney, rubbish, prevarication, Colloq eyewash, hogwash, boloney, soft soap, weasel words, sweet talk, bull, crap, Brit waffle, cock, US bushwa; Taboo slang bullshit, horseshit, (load of) shit, Brit codswallop, bollocks or ballocks: Don''t believe a thing Fordyce says - it''s all flannel. --v. 2 flatter, hedge, mislead, pull the wool over (someone''s) eyes, Colloq soft-soap, sweet-talk, Taboo slang bullshit, horseshit, shit: They aren''t sincere - they''re just flannelling you.
flap | flap: v. 1 slap, slat, beat, flail, wave, wag, waggle, flutter, thresh, thrash, oscillate, vibrate: An ornithopter is an aeroplane that flaps its wings like a bird. The Union Jack was flapping in the breeze. --n. 2 flapping, beat, wave, wag, waggle, flutter, oscillation: With a flap of its wings, the bird flew away. 3 fold, fly, lappet, lap, tail, tab: Leave a flap of cloth to cover the pocket. 4 upset, agitation, to-do, ado, commotion, panic, flurry, fuss, distress, Colloq state, tizzy, sweat, Brit kerfuffle: She''s in a flap about what to wear to the dance. 5 quarrel, argument, dispute: There was a big flap over which car model to buy.
flare | flare: v. 1 Often, flare up. blaze or flame (up), flash, erupt, break out; dazzle, flicker, glimmer, shimmer, flutter: The fire flared up briefly when he tossed the paper onto it. 2 Often, flare out. spread (out or outwards), widen, broaden, expand, increase, enlarge, bulge, swell: The sides of the vase flare out near the top. 3 Often, flare up. anger, lose one''s temper, chafe, seethe, fume, rage, throw a tantrum, become incensed or angry (etc.); blow up, burst forth, erupt, explode; Colloq get one''s back up, get one''s Irish or dander up, see red, get worked up, fly off the handle, lose one''s cool, go out of or lose control, get hot under the collar, blow one''s top: He flares up at the very mention of her name. Tempers flared when we touched on the subject of politics. --n. 4 blaze, flame, burst, outburst, flash, glare, dazzle, incandescence, brilliance, luminosity: A bright orange flare erupted from the mouth of the cave. 5 beacon, light, signal, torch, flambeau, link: We prayed that the rescue party would see our flares. 6 spread, broadening, widening, expansion, swelling, bulge, increase, enlargement: I like that slight flare at the hem of the skirt.
flash | flash: n. 1 blaze, flame, flare, burst, dazzle, spark, sparkle, coruscation, fulguration, glitter, twinkle, twinkling, flicker, flickering, scintilla, scintillation, glint, shimmer, glimmer, gleam, beam, ray, shaft: There was a blinding flash of blue light and the little man was gone. 2 (sudden or momentary) display, stroke, show, manifestation, outburst, outbreak, sign, indication, exhibition; touch, hint, suggestion: She has occasional flashes of insight bordering on genius. 3 moment, (split) second, instant, twinkling (of an eye), trice, minute, Colloq two shakes (of a lamb''s tail), jiffy, shake, before you can say ''Jack Robinson'': In a flash he was at her side. --v. 4 burn, blaze, flame, flare, burst (out), dazzle, spark, sparkle, coruscate, fulgurate, glitter, twinkle, flicker, scintillate, shimmer, glimmer, gleam, beam, glare, shine: The light flashed every eight seconds. 5 race, speed, dash, streak, flick, tear, rush, hurry, hasten, fly, zoom, shoot, bolt, whistle; run, sprint, dart, scuttle, scamper, Colloq scoot, skedaddle, take off, whiz or whizz: The train flashed by, doing about 100. --adj. 6 dazzling, showy, ostentatious, smart, chic, Colloq swish, classy, ritzy, snazzy: Barbara''s new car looks very flash. 7 See flashy, 1.
flashy | flashy: adj. 1 flash, gaudy, flamboyant, glaring, fulgurous, showy, ostentatious, loud, garish, vulgar, cheap, meretricious, pretentious, tawdry, tasteless, Colloq tacky, Slang jazzy, US glitzy: He was attracted by her flashy appearance. 2 superficial, cosmetic, skin-deep, surface, shallow, glib, slick, facile, insubstantial, thin: The reviewer called it a flashy interpretation of the Bard.
flat | flat: adj. 1 level, horizontal, even, smooth, plane, unbroken, uninterrupted: I looked out over the flat surface of the frozen bay. 2 prostrate, prone, supine, lying (down), stretched out, recumbent, outstretched, reclining, spread-eagle(d), spread out, outspread: I lay flat on my back staring up at the sky. 3 collapsed, levelled, overthrown, laid low: The air raid had left all the buildings completely flat. 4 downright, outright, unqualified, unreserved, unconditional, absolute, categorical, explicit, unconditional, definite, firm, positive, out-and-out, unequivocal, peremptory, unambiguous, unmistakable, direct, complete, total: The request for clemency was met with the judge''s flat refusal. 5 featureless, monotonous, dull, dead, uninteresting, unexciting, vapid, bland, empty, two-dimensional, insipid, boring, tiresome, lifeless, spiritless, lacklustre, prosaic, stale, tired, dry, jejune: The critics wrote that she turned in a very flat performance. 6 deflated, collapsed, punctured, ruptured, blown out: We had a flat tyre on the way. 7 unchangeable, unchanging, invariable, unvaried, unvarying, standard, fixed, unmodified, unmodifiable, Colloq US cookie-cutter: They charge the same flat rate for children, the elderly, and all between. 8 dead, insipid, stale, tasteless, flavourless, unpalatable; decarbonated, non-effervescent: My beer has gone flat. 9 exact, precise: It''s a flat ten minutes from here to the railway station. 10 definite, certain, sure, irrevocable: I said I''m not going, and that''s flat. 11 dull, slow, sluggish, inactive, depressed: Business has been a bit flat since Christmas. 12 dull, mat or matt or matte, unshiny, non-gloss(y), non-reflective, non-glare, unpolished: The table looks better with a flat finish. 13 lacking perspective, two-dimensional, lifeless, unrealistic: Some of his paintings seem pretty flat to me. --n. 14 Often, flats. a US low shoes, loafers, sandals, Colloq flatties: Cynthia said that wearing flats makes her feet hurt. b lowland(s), plain(s), tundra, steppe(s), prairie(s), savannah or savanna, heath, moor, pampas; mud-flat(s); shallow(s), shoal, strand; marsh, bog, fen, swamp: Before us was a large flat of barren ground. 15 rooms, suite, apartment: How can you afford to keep a flat in London? --adv. 16 absolutely, completely, categorically, utterly, wholly, uncompromisingly, irrevocably, positively, definitely, directly; exactly, precisely, flatly: He has come out flat in favour of the status quo. When he started drinking, she left him flat. 17 flat out. a at maximum or top or full or breakneck speed, speedily, quickly, apace, on the run, rapidly, swiftly, at full speed or gallop, post-haste, hell for leather, like a bat out of hell, like a shot, like (greased) lightning, like the wind: Someone shouted ''Fire!'' and we headed flat out for the exits. b flatly, unhesitatingly, directly, at once, immediately, forthwith, without delay; plainly, openly, baldly, brazenly, brashly: He asked to borrow some money and she told him ''No'', flat out. --n. 18 room(s), flat, suite (of rooms), chambers, tenement; garden flat, maisonette, penthouse, studio, Brit bedsitter, bedsit; accommodation, living quarters, Colloq Brit digs , US and Canadian apartment, furnished room, walk-up, duplex, triplex, garden apartment: We rented a two-bedroom flat in a good neighbourhood.
flatten | flatten: v. 1 level or even (off or out); smooth (out), press or iron (out), roll: The children''s noses were flattened against the window of the toy shop. You will have to flatten the lawn if you want to play croquet on it. 2 knock down or over, knock out, floor, prostrate: Menges flattened the champion in the first round. 3 raze, tear down, demolish, level: The bomb flattened every house in the area.
flatter | flatter: v. 1 butter up, play up to, compliment, praise, fawn (on or upon), toady to, truckle to, court, curry favour with, Colloq flannel, soft-soap, oil; Slang shine or suck up to, boot-lick, Taboo kiss (someone''s) arse, brown-nose: Flattering the boss won''t get you a salary increase. 2 enhance, complement, suit, show to advantage: That colour flatters her complexion. 3 cajole, wheedle, coax, inveigle, beguile, sweet-talk: He was flattered into signing that contract.
flatterer | flatterer: n. toady, sycophant, fawner, wheedler, time-server, courtier, backscratcher, sponge, parasite, leech, hanger-on, sweet-talker, backslapper, truckler, lickspittle, Colloq yes-man; Slang bootlicker, Taboo brown-noser , Brit arse-kisser, arse-licker, bum-sucker, US ass-kisser, ass-licker: Don''t believe anything that flatterer tells you.
flattering | flattering: adj. 1 complimentary, becoming, kind, enhancing: That is quite a flattering portrait of Dorian. 2 adulatory, laudatory, gratifying, fulsome, honeyed, sugary, fawning, ingratiating, unctuous, slimy, Chiefly Brit smarmy: Authors once wrote the most flattering dedications to their patrons.
flattery | flattery: n. adulation, cajolery, blandishment, sweet talk, beguilement, wheedling, gloze, Colloq soft soap, Slang boot-licking, Taboo brown-nosing, Brit arse-kissing, arse-licking, bum-sucking, US ass-kissing, ass-licking: A judicious use of flattery moved him up the corporate ladder.
flaunt | flaunt: v. display, show (off), parade, flourish, exhibit, sport, disport, spotlight: They were like all the other nouveaux riches who flaunt their wealth in the stylish continental resorts.
flavour | flavour: n. 1 taste, savour, tang, piquancy, zest; tastiness, savouriness; essence, extract, seasoning, flavouring, seasoning, spice; aroma, odour, scent; Rare sapor: Overcooking destroys the flavour of food. This sweet has a minty flavour. 2 character, spirit, nature, quality, property, mark, stamp, essence, characteristic, style, taste, feel, feeling, ambience or ambiance, sense, tinge, aroma, air, atmosphere, hint, suggestion, touch, soup�on: We all agreed that the new play has a Shavian flavour. --v. 3 season, spice: She flavours her teacakes with ginger.
flaw | flaw: n. 1 fault, defect, imperfection, error, mistake, blemish, blot, stain, taint, (black) mark, damage, disfigurement, failing, weakness, weak spot; loophole: Flaws in the casting give this bell a dull sound. I can see flaws in your argument. 2 crack, break, breach, chink, chip, fracture, rupture, fissure, cleft, split, slit, cut, gash, rent, rift, tear, rip, puncture, hole, perforation: The tiniest flaw may reduce the value of a pot to a collector. --v. 3 damage, harm, spoil, ruin, mark, weaken, disfigure: Careless workmanship has flawed many of the objects they produced. 4 discredit, stigmatize, damage, hurt, harm; taint, mar, stain, blot: Her reputation has already been flawed.
flawed | flawed: adj. damaged, harmed, marred, weakened, tainted, stained, tarnished, defective, imperfect, unsound, faulty: His flawed record prevented him from getting work.
flawless | flawless: adj. 1 perfect, pristine, pure, uncorrupted, chaste, virgin, intact, whole, clean, immaculate, unsullied, unspoilt, unsoiled, impeccable, unblemished, faultless, undamaged, unimpaired, spotless, untarnished: Two flawless artefacts were found in the tomb. Many envied her flawless reputation. 2 undeniable, unassailable, unimpeachable, unquestionable, irrefutable, foolproof, sound, demonstrable: The prosecutor''s evidence appears to be flawless.
flecked | flecked: adj. spotted, dappled, pied, (be)speckled, (be)sprinkled, dotted, marked, stippled, dusted, specked, spattered, freckled: His lank brown hair was flecked with grey.
flee | flee: v. 1 quit, run away or off, escape, get away, fly, take flight, bolt, go (away), decamp, abscond, seek safety, avoid, make off, make an exit, make (good) one''s escape, make a (clean) getaway, beat a (hasty) retreat, take to one''s heels, show a clean pair of heels, turn tail, make tracks, make a run for it, cut and run, vanish, disappear, Brit levant, Colloq take off, scoot, make oneself scarce, beat it, clear out, fly the coop, skedaddle, scram, Brit scarper, Australian and New Zealand shoot through, US and Canadian take a (run-out) powder, skip (town), cut out, hightail it, Old-fashioned skiddoo; Slang split, Brit bugger off, do a moonlight flit, do a bunk, US and Canadian vamoose, lam out, take it on the lam, blow, bail out: He fled the town and was never seen again. When they saw what they had done, they fled. She fled to Brazil to avoid the tax authorities. 2 avoid, evade, shun, escape from, eschew: She fled the responsibilities of caring for her children.
fleece | fleece: v. cheat, overcharge, swindle, bilk, defraud, victimize, plunder, strip, milk, rob, Colloq take, flimflam, gyp, diddle, bleed, take for a ride or to the cleaners, Slang rip off, chisel, pluck, rook, clip, soak: The gang stole credit cards and fleeced the companies out of millions.
fleet� | fleet�: n. armada, flotilla, navy, naval (task) force, task force, squadron, convoy, division: A fleet of submarines was sent to harass shipping in the Atlantic.
fleet� | fleet�: adj. swift, rapid, fast, speedy, quick, nimble, expeditious, agile: Nowadays, the fleetest transportation in a large city is by bicycle.
fleeting | fleeting: adj. transitory, fugitive, transient, temporary, passing, ephemeral, fugacious, evanescent, momentary, short-lived, fly-by-night, short, brief: I caught only a fleeting glimpse of the car as it sped by.
flesh | flesh: n. 1 meat; tissue, muscle: We ate the flesh and threw away the fat, bones, and skin. 2 body, corporeality, flesh and blood, human nature, physicality; mortality: The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak. 3 flesh and blood. real, physical, corporeal, human, natural: He pointed out that he was flesh and blood, not a robot. 4 in the flesh. personally, in person, really, physically, bodily, alive, living, in life: She stood before me, in the flesh. 5 one''s (own) flesh and blood. kin, kinsfolk or US and Canadian kinfolk, family, stock, blood, kith and kin, relatives, relations: How could she treat her own flesh and blood that way? --v. 6 flesh out. substantiate, fill (in or out), give or lend substance or dimension to, incorporate, embody, colour: The idea is good, but it needs fleshing out.
flex | flex: n. 1 wire, lead, cord, cable, extension: Replace this flex before you have a short circuit. --v. 2 bend, give, stretch, curve: The plastic tube can be flexed many times without breaking. 3 exercise, tense, tighten, contract: He flexed his muscles before lifting the weight.
flexibility | flexibility: n. 1 pliability, pliancy or pliantness, elasticity, resilience or resiliency, suppleness, flexibleness, bendability, limberness, stretch, give, spring, springiness, ductility: Chemists improved the flexibility of the substance by adding more plasticizer. 2 conformability or conformableness, adaptability, versatility, adjustability or adjustableness, compliance or compliancy, manageability, tractability or tractableness, malleability, obedience, submissiveness, docility, agreeableness, conformity: Fletcher has the flexibility needed to move from one department to another.
flexible | flexible: adj. 1 pliable, pliant, elastic, resilient, supple, bendable, limber, lithe, stretchy, stretchable, springy, extensible or extensile, ductile, flexile, tensile, yielding, willowy: The foil is a thin, flexible duelling sword. 2 modifiable, adaptable, conformable, compliant, malleable, obedient, tractable, manageable, cooperative, amenable, persuadable or persuasible: English seems to be an infinitely flexible language. Nicole is flexible in her attitude towards politics. 3 easy, facile, submissive, complaisant, docile: Discipline at the school might be a little too flexible.
flicker | flicker: v. 1 twinkle, blink, waver, glimmer, glint, sparkle, shimmer, flare, gutter: A slight draught made the candles flicker. 2 flap, flutter, quiver, twitter, fluctuate, oscillate, shake, tremble, vibrate: Dozens of tiny flags flickered in the wind. --n. 3 glimmer, glint, glimmering, sparkle, spark, twinkle, twinkling, gleam, flare, glare: With a dying flicker the torch went out. 4 hint, suggestion, trace, glimmer, vestige, scintilla, spark: I thought I detected a flicker of recognition when our eyes met.
flight� | flight�: n. 1 flying, soaring, winging, excursion: The flight above the mountains was exhilarating. He is subject to wild flights of the imagination. 2 (air) voyage or journey or trip: We had a fine flight from New Delhi. 3 aeroplane, airliner, plane, aircraft: Our flight was delayed in Istanbul. 4 flock, swarm, cloud, covey (of grouse or partridge), bevy (of quail), skein (of geese), exaltation (of larks): A flight of migrating birds passed overhead. 5 feather: The flights on this dart are broken.
flight� | flight�: n. 1 escape, retreat, departure, exit, exodus, getaway, fleeing, bolting, Slang split: Mohammed''s flight from Mecca to Medina in 622 is called a ''hegira''. 2 put to flight. chase or drive (off or away), disperse, send off or away, send packing, dismiss, rout, stampede: They put the Saracens to flight in a decisive battle. 3 take flight. flee, go or run away or off, abscond, desert, depart, (beat a) retreat, exit, bolt, decamp, withdraw, take to one''s heels, show a clean pair of heels, Colloq light out, shove off, Brit scarper, US take a (run-out) powder, take it on the lam, lam out; Slang split, Brit do a bunk, do a moonlight flit, bugger off: The constable blew his whistle and the thief took flight.
flighty | flighty: adj. 1 fickle, frivolous, inconstant, capricious, fanciful, changeable, variable, mercurial, skittish, volatile, unstable, unsteady, giddy, wild: These flighty girls never stay in a job more than a month. 2 irresponsible, light-headed, rattle-brained, silly, hare-brained, dizzy, crazy, mad, reckless, thoughtless, Colloq nutty, screwy, dotty, dippy: It was flighty of Caroline to pour the brandy into the well.
flimsy | flimsy: adj. 1 slight, frail, weak, insubstantial or unsubstantial, feeble, makeshift, fragile, frangible, breakable, rickety, ramshackle, dilapidated, jerry-built, gimcrack, slight, delicate: That flimsy ladder will never support me. He lives in a flimsy shack near the railway. 2 slight, trivial, paltry, feeble, unconvincing, weak, makeshift, implausible, unbelievable, unsatisfactory, insubstantial or unsubstantial, poor, inadequate: Her flimsy excuse was that she had a headache. 3 sheer, light, gauzy, transparent, thin, filmy, diaphanous, gossamer, delicate: She was wearing a flimsy pink blouse.
flinch | flinch: v. wince, draw back, withdraw, cower, cringe, recoil, start, quail, blench, shrink (from), shy (away) (from), dodge, duck: Each time he raised the whip, I flinched.
fling | fling: v. 1 toss, pitch, throw, cast, hurl, heave, sling, propel, fire, let fly, send, Colloq lob, chuck: The smugglers had flung the contraband into the sea. --n. 2 indulgence, debauch, binge, spree, party, Colloq blow-off: This will be my last fling before going into the army. 3 gamble, risk, venture, attempt, try, go, shot, Colloq crack, whirl, bash: Her brief fling at an acting career was unsuccessful.
flip | flip: v. 1 toss, flick, snap, flop, turn, twist, spin: Flip a coin to see who goes first. 2 anger, become angry or furious, go mad, go crazy, go berserk, US also flip out, Colloq go off the deep end, lose one''s cool, Slang flip one''s lid or Brit top, Brit freak, US freak out, lose it: Father flipped when I said I was quitting college.
flippancy | flippancy: n. 1 frivolousness, facetiousness, levity, light-heartedness, frivolity, jocularity, offhandedness, unseriousness: I was chagrined that she should treat my proposal of marriage with such flippancy. 2 disrespect, disrespectfulness, impudence, impertinence, irreverence, sauciness, rudeness, discourtesy, brazenness, brashness, pertness, insolence, Colloq cheek, cheekiness, lip, mouth, Slang Brit side: The headmaster will not tolerate flippancy on serious subjects such as religion and race relations.
flippant | flippant: adj. 1 frivolous, facetious, light-hearted, jocular, offhand(ed), unserious, shallow, thoughtless, superficial; supercilious, belittling, scornful, dismissive: I don''t appreciate your flippant remarks when I''m trying to be serious. 2 disrespectful, impudent, impertinent, irreverent, saucy, rude, pert, discourteous, brazen, brash, insolent, Colloq cheeky, flip: He disapproves of Charles''s flippant attitude towards the royal family.
flirt | flirt: v. 1 coquette, play or act the coquette, tease, tantalize, toy, lead on, dally, philander, Colloq Brit chat up; Slang US come on to: Amanda enjoys flirting with the boys. 2 flirt with. trifle or toy or play or tinker with, contemplate, consider, entertain, give a thought to, think about or of, Colloq Brit try on: Many teenagers flirt with the idea of leaving home. --n. 3 coquette, tease, vamp, hussy, playgirl, minx; philanderer, playboy, Slang lady-killer, Old-fashioned wolf, sheik, masher, lounge lizard, Taboo slang cock-teaser, prick-teaser: They are both such flirts, I can''t tell if their advances are genuine.
flirtatious | flirtatious: adj. coquettish, vampish, seductive, flirty, coy, philandering, provocative, enticing, alluring, amorous, come-hither: They exchanged many flirtatious looks across the table.
flit | flit: v. move, go, fly, flee, dart, skip, skim, flick, hop, whisk, flutter, flash: As a bee flits from flower to flower, she flits from man to man.
float | float: v. 1 hover, poise, bob, waft, be suspended, hang; sail, drift, glide, swim: In the clear Caribbean waters, the boat seemed to float in mid-air. 2 launch, establish, set up, organize, found, initiate, get going or moving: The financiers are trying to float a new company. 3 negotiate, arrange, transact, bring or carry off, get, effect, consummate, Colloq pull off, swing: Were you able to float a loan on your house? --n. 4 raft, Brit platform: I can swim out to the float. 5 buoy; pontoon: The bridge is supported by floats. 6 (parade) exhibit or display: Our parade float won first prize.
flock | flock: n. 1 body, company, group, band, pack, bunch, troop, set, collection, assembly, convoy, gathering, congregation, crowd, mass, mob, throng, gang, multitude, number, quantity, host, horde, swarm, drove; herd, flight, troupe, fleet, school; bevy: A huge flock of buyers sought bargains in the post-Christmas sales. --v. 2 assemble, meet, collect, gather, come or go together, congregate, crowd, mass, mob, throng, pour, flood, swarm, herd (together), band together, go: People flocked around the speaker.
flog | flog: v. 1 whip, lash, horsewhip, strap, flagellate, flay, scourge, thrash, thresh, beat; chastise, castigate, punish: He will be flogged, then drawn and quartered. He was flogged for stealing a loaf of bread. 2 sell; promote, publicize: Her latest job is flogging encyclopedias door-to-door.
flood | flood: n. 1 inundation, deluge, overflow(ing), d�b�cle: The hurricane was accompanied by a devastating flood. 2 torrent, cataract, freshet, overflow, stream, spate: A flood of lava poured down the mountain. 3 abundance, deluge, overflowing, surge, outpouring, torrent, tide, tidal wave, stream, rush, flow, glut, surfeit, satiety, profusion, over-abundance, superabundance, nimiety, plethora, excess, surplus, superfluity: A flood of invective poured from her lips. --v. 4 inundate, submerge, overflow, swamp, immerse, deluge, pour over, drown: The water flooded everything in the basement. 5 overwhelm, glut, oversupply, saturate, choke: The market is being flooded with cheap imitations. 6 sweep, flow, swarm, surge, rush, crowd, pour: As soon as the doors opened, the people flooded in. 7 permeate, fill, engulf, cover, pour into or throughout or over: I open the curtain and sunlight floods the room.
floor | floor: n. 1 flooring, parquet, boarding, planking, Nautical or colloq deck: The floor is mopped once a week. 2 storey, level; deck: On which floor is your flat? 3 minimum, bottom, base, lower limit, lowest (level): Owing to inflation, the wage floor was raised. Share prices went through the floor in today''s trading. --v. 4 knock over or down, bowl over, prostrate, fell, overthrow, bring down, (make) fall; beat, defeat, conquer, destroy, rout, overwhelm, crush, whip, trounce, thrash, drub, best, worst: The champion was floored by a blow to the head. 5 stump, bewilder, baffle, dumbfound or dumfound, confuse, confound, disconcert, nonplus, perplex, puzzle, astound, astonish, amaze, surprise, shock: Alexandra was floored when she received a gift from her ex-husband.
flop | flop: v. 1 collapse, drop (down), fall (down), tumble, topple, plump down, plop down, flounce down: I was so exhausted that I flopped into bed at once. 2 flap, wave, swing: The door, unfastened, flopped back and forth in the wind. 3 fail, fall flat, come to naught or nothing, founder, Colloq fold, US bomb: The musical flopped on the first night. --n. 4 failure, fiasco, disaster, non-starter, d�b�cle, US fizzle, Colloq dud, washout, clanger, US lead balloon, bomb; Slang lemon, Brit cock-up, damp squib: His idea for a new corkscrew was a complete flop.
flounce | flounce: n. 1 frill, furbelow, peplum, ruffle, ornament, valance, trimming: The dress has decorative flounces round the skirt. --v. 2 fling, toss, bounce, twist, strut, toss, parade, march, storm, stamp, US sashay: She flounced out of the room in high dudgeon.
flounder | flounder: v. grope, blunder, stumble, tumble, struggle, stagger, plunge about: We floundered about in the dark till someone found the light switch.
flourish | flourish: v. 1 prosper, thrive, grow, develop, luxuriate, bloom, blossom, flower, bear fruit, fructify, boom, burgeon or bourgeon, mature, ripen, increase, succeed, get ahead, do or fare well, make good; go up or rise in the world; Slang go great guns: We understand that Amy''s medical practice has flourished. 2 wave, wield, brandish, wag, swing, twirl, flaunt, vaunt, swagger, swish, shake: The band-leader flourished his baton. --n. 3 decoration, embellishment, floridness, floweriness, ornamentation, elaboration, adornment, frill, embroidery, curlicue, furbelow: His signature is characterized by all these flourishes. 4 fanfare, display, show, showiness, dash, gesturing, wave: With a flourish of his hand, the king signalled the tourney to begin.
flourishing | flourishing: adj. luxuriant, lush, thriving, prospering, blooming, blossoming, fruitful, flowering, burgeoning or bourgeoning, successful, prosperous, booming, growing, increasing: Patel runs a flourishing flower shop in Bicester.
flout | flout: v. deride, scorn, disdain, contemn, spurn, decry, denounce, misprize, blaspheme, depreciate, degrade, abase, belittle, minimize, deprecate, disparage, denigrate, mock, jeer, guy, ridicule, scoff, sneer, gibe or jibe (at), taunt, twit, insult, affront, Archaic fleer; Colloq put down, chaff, rag, knock: When introduced in the sixties, miniskirts brazenly flouted convention.
flow | flow: v. 1 stream, pour, run, rush, course, surge, move, go, proceed, progress, drift; gush, glide, purl, roll, ripple, trickle, gurgle, bubble; swirl, whirl, circulate: People continue to flow past the window. The Thames flows silently to the sea. 2 rush, gush, surge, well (forth), stream, spring, issue, spout, spurt, squirt, spew, flood, cascade, fall, rain; brim, overflow, spill, teem: Open the gates to allow water to flow into the lock. A stream of insults flowed from his lips. Her tears flowed like wine. 3 issue, originate, come, emanate, rise, begin: With the dam repaired, water will once again flow from the reservoir. The authority of the state constitutions does not flow from Congress. 4 spread, overspread, cover: The paint flowed effortlessly onto the canvas. --n. 5 rush, gush, surge; current, course, stream, run, movement, drift: A dam blocks the flow of water here. The sound of a shot interrupted the flow of conversation. 6 abundance, superabundance, flood, plethora, excess, overflow(ing), deluge, tide, supply; plenty: London experiences an unending flow of tourists.
flower | flower: n. 1 blossom, bloom, floret or floweret, bud, Technical efflorescence: He brought me flowers for my birthday. 2 cream, best, pick, �lite, cr�me de la cr�me, finest, choicest: The flower of the city''s youth were put to death by the wicked caliph. --v. 3 blossom, bloom, bud, burgeon or bourgeon, come out, open, unfold, Technical effloresce: The century plant was so called because it was thought to flower only once every hundred years.
flowery | flowery: adj. florid, ornate, fancy, elaborate(d), decorated, ornamented, overwrought, embellished, rococo, baroque, arabesque, euphuistic, Gongoristic, Ossianic, grandiloquent, bombastic, inflated, pompous, affected, artificial, high-flown, showy: Many find his flowery style of writing difficult to stomach.
fluctuate | fluctuate: v. vary, change, alternate, see-saw, swing, vacillate, undulate, waver, oscillate, shift: Prices fluctuate according to supply and demand.
fluctuation | fluctuation: n. Sometimes, fluctuations. variation(s), change(s), alternation(s), swing(s), vacillation(s), wavering(s), oscillation(s), undulation(s), ups and downs, instability, unsteadiness, inconstancy: We can expect fluctuation in temperatures during the coming week.
fluency | fluency: n. articulateness, eloquence, control, command, ease, grace, effortlessness, facility, felicity, smoothness, polish, slickness, glibness, volubility: His extemporaneous speeches are marked by an enviable fluency.
fluent | fluent: adj. articulate, eloquent, well-spoken, felicitous, graceful, facile, easy, natural, effortless, ready, smooth, polished, flowing, voluble, glib, slick; expressive: She is a fluent speaker of Spanish.
fluff | fluff: n. 1 down, fuzz, feather(s), thistledown, floss, lint, dust, dust-ball, fuzz ball: Be sure you clean the fluff from under the beds. 2 bit of fluff. poppet, girl (friend), mistress, Slang bit of all right, (bit of) crumpet, (bit of) skirt or stuff, Old-fashioned Brit popsy: Bickerley keeps some fluff on the side. 3 blunder, error, slip, mistake, Colloq howler, Brit bloomer, US and Canadian blooper: They showed a video of the fluffs actors make during recordings. --v. 4 muddle, spoil, ruin, make a mess of, bungle, botch, Colloq foul up, screw up, mess up, US snafu, Slang Brit cock up, balls up, US ball up, Taboo fuck up: I have a funny story about how Barrymore fluffed Hamlet''s soliloquy. 5 fluff up. puff up, shake out or up, aerate: He doesn''t like the pillows on his bed fluffed up.
fluffy | fluffy: adj. 1 soft, downy, puffy, whipped up, light, airy, puffy, feathery, wispy: Beat the egg whites till they are fluffy. 2 frivolous, superficial, trivial, unimportant, airy, thin, lightweight, light, insubstantial, gossamer, Brit airy-fairy: Mr Piffle is too fluffy-headed to offer anything useful.
fluid | fluid: n. 1 liquid, solution, liquor, ichor; gas, vapour: It might surprise some to learn that physicists consider gases to be fluids. --adj. 2 liquid, flowing, running, runny, watery, aqueous: Once the metal has become fluid, it is poured into the moulds. 3 changeable, mutable, flexible, adjustable, variable, pliant, unformed, formless, unfixed, unstatic or non-static, plastic, protean, mercurial, mobile, unstable, shifting, uncertain, indefinite, unsettled: The situation is fluid and the decision could go either way.
fluke | fluke: n. lucky or successful stroke, stroke of (good) luck, lucky or big break, (happy) accident, quirk or twist of fate, windfall, fortuity, serendipity: If he won first prize, it was by a fluke.
flummox | flummox: v. confuse, baffle, perplex, bewilder, confound, throw into confusion, stymie, stump, puzzle, mystify, fox, deceive, hoodwink, nonplus: We were completely flummoxed by the licensing requirements.
flunkey | flunkey: n. 1 servant, retainer, lackey, footman, menial, minion, hireling, underling, subordinate, inferior; slave; Colloq dogsbody, Slang US and Canadian gofer: A company flunkey drove me to the airport. 2 toady, hanger-on, yes-man, jackal, doormat, stooge, lickspittle, sycophant, Colloq US and Canadian apple-polisher, Taboo brown-noser: He has a collection of flunkeys waiting about for hand-outs.
flurry | flurry: n. 1 activity, commotion, ado, to-do, fuss, upset, hubbub, pother, stir, excitement, disturbance, agitation, tumult, whirl, furore, bustle, hurry, hustle, flutter, fluster; burst, outburst; Colloq tizzy: I was happy to leave the worry and flurry of the city. There was a brief flurry of activity at the Stock Exchange today. --v. 2 confuse, bewilder, agitate, put out, disturb, excite, fluster, disconcert, upset, perturb, unsettle, shake (up), Colloq rattle: He was quite flurried by the arrival of the police.
flush� | flush�: v. 1 blush, redden, crimson, glow, burn, colour (up): When he told her she was pretty she flushed a bit. 2 Often, flush out. rinse, wash (out or away), douse, douche, hose down, flood, drench, clean out, cleanse, purge, discharge, empty: Oil tankers are flushed out far from shore. 3 animate, stir, inflame, impassion, quicken, arouse, excite, elate, encourage, cheer, delight, thrill, gladden: Suzie was flushed with the success of having got the job. --n. 4 blush, redness, bloom, rosiness, colour, blood, glow, radiance: When he was asked what had happened to the money, a flush rose to his cheek. 5 flood, deluge, drenching, soaking, overflow, inundation, rush, gush, surge, stream, flow: The flush of water washed away all the debris. 6 thrill, excitement, passion, quickening, arousal, stir, stirring, animation, elation, euphoria, delight, encouragement, thrill, tingle: In the first flush of success, they were overwhelmed with orders. He felt a flush come over him when he won the race.
flush� | flush�: adj. 1 (on the same) plane or level (with), even, smooth, flat, square, true, continuous; adjacent, next to: See that the tabletop is flush with the countertop. The mirror should be flush against the wall. 2 full, overflowing, replete, abundant: Turn off the water when it is flush with the top of the basin. 3 solvent, well supplied, comfortable; well-to-do, well off, well-found, wealthy, rich, prosperous, affluent, moneyed, Colloq well-heeled, on Easy Street, in the money, US in the chips; Slang loaded, rolling (in money or it): He''s flush enough to take us all out to dinner. --adv. 4 even(ly), square(ly), levelly, plumb, directly: Cut this branch off flush.
fluster | fluster: v. 1 agitate, stir (up), discompose, discomfit, discomfort, disconcert, shake (up), upset, disquiet, discommode, bother, put out or off, disturb, perturb, flurry, flutter, make nervous, throw off, distract, confuse, baffle, confound, puzzle, perplex, befuddle, bewilder, daze, dazzle, Colloq rattle, throw, discombobulate, hassle, faze: Don''t be flustered by her rude manner. --n. 2 agitation, upset, discomfort, disquiet, bother, disturbance, commotion, perturbation, dither, flurry, flutter, nervousness, distraction, confusion, bafflement, befuddlement, perplexity, bewilderment: All this fluster came about through the absence of a coherent plan.
flutter | flutter: v. 1 flap, flop, fluctuate, vacillate, wave, waver, oscillate: The paper streamers fluttered in the breeze. 2 flit, flicker, flitter, hover, dance; fuss: We shall never get done if you keep fluttering about. 3 tremble, shake, quiver, dither, jump, vibrate, twitch: She is fluttering with anticipation waiting for the postman. --n. 4 fluttering, flapping, flopping, fluctuation, fluctuating, vacillation, vacillating, wave, waving, oscillation, oscillating, trembling, quiver, quivering: The slightest flutter of her fan communicates volumes. 5 See fluster, 2.
flux | flux: n. instability, change, mutation, modification, fluctuation, unrest, swing, swinging, wavering, movement, motion, oscillation, indecision, indecisiveness: The economic indicators are in a constant state of flux.
fly | fly: v. 1 take wing, take flight, take to the air, wing, soar, sail, hover; flutter, flit, flap: A stork flew overhead. Daedalus taught Icarus to fly. 2 Also, fly away or off. take flight, depart, leave, flee, decamp, bolt, run away or off, escape, make (good) one''s escape, take to one''s heels, show a clean pair of heels, rush or nip off or out or away, (make a) run (for it), go or get away or off, abscond, make a getaway, cut and run, beat a (hasty) retreat, take off, scoot, Colloq light out, beat it, clear out or off, skedaddle, scram, US cut out, hightail (it), take it on the lam, take a (run-out) powder, lam out, take to the hills, take to the woods; Slang Brit scarper, bugger off, US vamoose, blow: She flew off before I could get her telephone number. 3 hasten, hurry, rush, run, race, dash, sprint, tear, scamper, scoot, Colloq make tracks: I must fly if I''m to catch the train. 4 pass (by), elapse, go (by), expire, run its course, slip or slide by or away: Time flies quickly when you''re having fun. 5 aviate, pilot; jet: Parker flies his own plane. I flew down to Paris with him. 6 fly in the face of. flout, defy, go against, contemn, scorn, scoff at, oppose, go or run counter to, counter, counteract, countervail, countermine, contradict, contravene, thumb one''s nose at, Colloq Brit cock a snook at: His actions fly in the face of conventional behaviour. 7 fly off the handle. fly into a rage or fury or temper or passion, lose one''s temper, have a fit or tantrum, be fit to be tied, go berserk, go crazy or mad, explode, Colloq lose or blow one''s cool, blow one''s top, hit or go through the roof, US hit the ceiling, blow one''s stack, get worked up (over); Slang blow a fuse or a gasket, flip (one''s lid), have a haemorrhage, Brit flip one''s top: Rudolf flies off the handle at the slightest provocation. 8 let fly. a throw, toss, cast, hurl, fling, heave, pitch, lob, sling, chuck, shoot, fire (off), let rip, discharge, launch, propel, let go or off: They let fly a volley of arrows. b let go with, let (someone) have it, lash out, vent one''s spleen, lose one''s temper, burst out or forth, burst into, Colloq pull no punches, tear into: That was the last straw, and she really let fly at him. --n. 9 Often, Brit flies. flap, fly front, Brit zip, US zipper: He was embarrassed to find his flies were open. 10 fly in the ointment. hitch, snag, impediment, obstacle, obstruction, problem, difficulty, drawback, detraction, rub, hindrance, bugbear, bogey, bugaboo, Offensive nigger in the woodpile: The one fly in the ointment is that my mother won''t give me permission to go.
fly-by-night | fly-by-night: adj. 1 temporary, short-lived, transitory, fugitive, ephemeral, transient, fleeting, passing, brief, impermanent, here today, gone tomorrow: That fly-by-night operation was in business for less than a month. 2 unreliable, untrustworthy, disreputable, irresponsible, dubious, questionable; shifty, dishonest, sharp, crooked, Colloq shady, Brit cowboy: Guarantees on double glazing are worthless if installed by some fly-by-night company.
