Etymology dictionary
flavorful (adj.) — floater (n.)
flavorful (adj.)
1904, from flavor (n.) + -ful. Earlier flavorsome (1853), flavory (1727), flavorous (1690s).
flavorless (adj.)
1730, from flavor (n.) + -less. Related: Flavorlessly; flavorlessness.
flavour
chiefly British English spelling of flavor; for spelling, see -or. Related: Flavoured; flavourful; flavouring.
flaw (v.)
"cause a flaw or defect in," early 15c. (implied in flawed); see flaw (n.). Related: Flawing.
flaw (n.)
early 14c., "a flake" (of snow), also in Middle English "a spark of fire; a splinter," from Old Norse flaga "stone slab, layer of stone" (see flag (n.2)), perhaps used here in an extended sense. Old English had floh stanes, but the Middle English form suggests a Scandinavian origin. "The close resemblance in sense between flaw and flake is noteworthy" [OED]. Sense of "defect, fault" first recorded 1580s, first of character, later (c. 1600) of material things; probably via notion of a "fragment" broken off.
flawless (n.)
1640s, from flaw (n.) + -less. Related: Flawlessly; flawlessness. Flawful (1881) probably exists only as a jocular formation.
flax (n.)
Old English fleax "flax plant; cloth made with flax, linen," from Proto-Germanic *flakhsan (source also of Old Frisian flax, Middle Dutch and Dutch vlas, Old Saxon flas, Old High German flahs, German Flachs), probably from Proto-Germanic base *fleh- "to plait," from PIE root *plek- "to plait." But some connect it with PIE *pleik- (see flay) from the notion of "stripping" fiber to prepare it.
flaxen (adj.)
"made of flax," mid-15c., from flax + -en (2). As "of the color of flax" (usually with reference to hair) it is attested from 1520s.
flaxseed (n.)
also flax-seed, 1560s, from flax + seed (n.).
flea (v.)
"clear of fleas," c. 1600, from flea (n.). Related: Flead.
flea (n.)
Old English flea "flea," from Proto-Germanic *flauhaz (source also of Old Norse flo, Middle Dutch vlo, German Floh), perhaps related to Old English fleon "to flee," with a notion of "the jumping parasite," but more likely from PIE *plou- "flea" (source also of Latin pulex, Greek psylla; see Pulex).
Chaucer's plural is fleen. Flea-bag is from 1839 as low slang for "a bed;" by 1942 in British slang as "a dog." Flea-collar is from 1953. Flea-pit (1937) is an old colloquial name for a movie-house, or, as OED puts it, "an allegedly verminous place of public assembly." Flea-circus is from 1886.
fleabane (n.)
also flea-bane, 1540s, from flea (n.) + bane (n.). Old English had fleawyrt, used of various plants supposed to destroy fleas.
flea-bite (n.)
mid-15c., figurative, "something that causes but slight pain," from flea (n.) + bite (n.). Related: Flea-bitten (1560s); flea-biting (verbal noun), 1550s.
fleam (n.)
"sharp instrument for opening veins in bloodletting," late Old English, from Old French flieme (Modern French flamme), from Medieval Latin fletoma, from Late Latin flebotomus, from Greek phlebotomos "a lancet" (see phlebotomy).
flea market (n.)
1910, especially in reference to the marché aux puces in Paris, so-called "because there are so many second-hand articles sold of all kinds that they are believed to gather fleas." [E.S. Dougherty, "In Europe," 1922].
fleck (v.)
late 14c., "to spot, stain, cover with spots," probably from Old Norse flekka "to spot," from Proto-Germanic *flekk- (source also of Middle Dutch vlecke, Old High German flec, German Fleck), from PIE *pleik- "to tear" (see flay). Related: Flecked; flecking.
fleck (n.)
1590s, "a mark on skin, a freckle," of uncertain origin; perhaps from fleck (v.) or else from a related word elsewhere in Germanic, such as Middle Dutch vlecke or Old Norse flekkr "a fleck, spot." From 1750 as "small particle," 1804 as "a patch, a spot" of any kind.
fled
past tense and past participle of flee (q.v.) and fly (v.2).
fledge (v.)
"to acquire feathers," 1560s, from Old English adjective *-flycge (Kentish -flecge; in unfligge "featherless," glossing Latin implumes) "having the feathers developed, fit to fly," from Proto-Germanic *flugja- "feather" (source also of Middle Dutch vlugge, Low German flügge), from PIE *pluk- "to fly," extended form of root *pleu- "to flow." Meaning "bring up a bird" (until it can fly on its own) is from 1580s. Related: Fledged; fledging.
fledged (adj.)
"furnished with feathers," 1570s (in full-fledged), thus "developed, matured, able to fly;" past-participle adjective from fledge (v.).
fledgling
also fledgeling, 1830, "untried" (adj.), in Tennyson; 1846 as a noun meaning "young bird" (one newly fledged); from fledge + diminutive suffix -ling. Of persons, from 1856.
flee (v.)
Old English fleon, flion "take flight, fly from, avoid, escape" (contracted class II strong verb; past tense fleah, past participle flogen), from Proto-Germanic *fleuhanan "to run away" (source also of Old High German fliohan, Old Norse flöja, Old Frisian flia, Dutch vlieden, German fliehen, Gothic þliuhan "to flee"), probably from PIE *pleuk-, extended form of root *pleu- "to flow," but Boutkan is not convinced. Also compare fly (v.2).
Weak past tense and past participle fled emerged in Middle English under influence of Scandinavian. Old English had a transitive form, geflieman "put to flight, banish, drive away," which came in handy in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. Related: fled; Fleeing.
fleece (n.)
"wool coat of a sheep," Old English fleos, flies "fleece, wool, fur, sealskin," from West Germanic *flusaz (source also of Middle Dutch vluus, Dutch vlies, Middle High German vlius, German Vlies), which is of uncertain origin; according to Watkins, probably from PIE *pleus- "to pluck," also "a feather, fleece" (source also of Latin pluma "feather, down," Lithuanian plunksna "feather"). De Vaan suggests the Latin pluma is "Probably a deverbal noun in *-mo-, possibly from a root *pleu- or *pleu-k- 'to swim, float (in the air)'."
fleece (v.)
1530s in the literal sense of "to strip (a sheep) of fleece," from fleece (n.). From 1570s in the figurative meaning "to cheat, swindle, strip of money." Related: Fleeced; fleecer; fleecing.
fleecy (adj.)
1560s, "wooly," from fleece (n.) + -y (2). From 1630s as "resembling fleece" in any sense (originally by Milton, of clouds).
fleer (v.)
"grin mockingly," c. 1400, perhaps from Scandinavian (compare dialectal Norwegian flira "giggle, laugh at nothing," dialectal Danish flire "to grin, sneer, titter"). Transitive sense from 1620s. Related: Fleered; fleering; fleeringly. As a noun from c. 1600.
fleer (n.)
"one who flees," late 14c., agent noun from flee (v.).
fleeting (adj.)
early 13c., "fickle, shifting, unstable," from Old English fleotende "floating, drifting," later "flying, moving swiftly," from present participle of fleotan "to float, drift, flow" (see fleet (v.)). Meaning "existing only briefly" is from 1560s. Related: Fleetingly.
fleet (n.)
Old English fleot "a ship, a raft, a floating vessel," also, collectively, "means of sea travel; boats generally," from fleotan "to float, swim," from Proto-Germanic *fleutanan (source also of Old Saxon fliotan, Old Frisian fliata, Old Norse fljta, Old High German fliozzan, Middle Dutch vlieten "to flow"), from PIE *pleud-, extended form of root *pleu- "to flow."
The sense of "naval force, group of ships under one command" is in late Old English. The more usual Old English word was flota "a ship," also "a fleet; a sailor." The fleet for "the navy" is attested by 1712. The Old English word also meant "estuary, inlet, flow of water," especially the one into the Thames near Ludgate Hill, which lent its name to Fleet Street (home of newspaper and magazine houses, hence its use metonymically for "the English press" since at least 1882) and Fleet prison (long used for debtors).
fleet (adj.)
"swift," 1520s, but probably older than the record; apparently from or cognate with Old Norse fliotr "swift," from Proto-Germanic *fleutaz, from PIE *pleud-, extended form of root *pleu- "to flow." Related: Fleetness.
fleet (v.)
Old English fleotan "to float; drift; flow, run (as water); swim; sail (of a ship)," from Proto-Germanic *fleutan (source also of Old Frisian fliata, Old Saxon fliotan "to flow," Old High German fliozzan "to float, flow," German fliessen "to flow, run, trickle" (as water), Old Norse fliota "to float, flow"), from PIE root *pleu- "to flow."
Meaning "to glide away like a stream, vanish imperceptibly" is from c. 1200; hence "to fade, to vanish" (1570s). Related: Fleeted; fleeting.
Fleming (n.)
from Old English Flæming "native or inhabitant of Flanders," from Old Dutch Vlaemingh, Old Frisian Fleming, both from Proto-Germanic *Flam- (see Flanders). The Germanic name was borrowed in Medieval Latin as Flamingus, hence Spanish Flamenco, Provençal Flamenc, etc. French has flandrin "a lanky lad" (15c.), originally a nickname of a Fleming, thence "any tall and meagre man," as they were thought to be [Kitchin].
Flemish (adj.)
"pertaining to or native to Flanders," early 14c., flemmysshe, probably from Old Frisian Flemische, or a native formation from Fleming + -ish.
flense (v.)
also flench, 1814, from Danish flense, perhaps, with other Germanic fli- words for "cutting, splitting" (for example flint, flinders) ultimately from PIE root *(s)plei- "to splice, split." Related: Flenser; flensing.
flesh (v.)
1520s, "to render (a hunting animal) eager for prey by rewarding it with flesh from a kill," with figurative extensions, from flesh (n.). Meaning "to clothe or embody with flesh," with figurative extensions, is from 1660s. Related: Fleshed; fleshing.
flesh (n.)
Old English flæsc "flesh, meat, muscular parts of animal bodies; body (as opposed to soul)," also "living creatures," also "near kindred" (a sense now obsolete except in phrase flesh and blood), from Proto-Germanic *flaiska-/*fleiski- (source also of Old Frisian flesk, Middle Low German vlees, German Fleisch "flesh," Old Norse flesk "pork, bacon"), which is of uncertain origin. According to Watkins, originally "piece of meat torn off," from PIE *pleik- "to tear," but Boutkan suspects a northern European substratum word.
Of fruits from 1570s. The figurative use for "carnal nature, animal or physical nature of man" (Old English) is from the Bible, especially Paul's use of Greek sarx, and this led to sense of "sensual appetites" (c. 1200).
Flesh-wound is from 1670s; flesh-color, the hue of "Caucasian" skin, is first recorded 1610s, described as a tint composed of "a light pink with a little yellow" [O'Neill, "Dyeing," 1862]. In the flesh "in a bodily form" (1650s) originally was of Jesus (Wycliffe has up the flesh, Tyndale after the flesh). An Old English poetry-word for "body" was flæsc-hama, literally "flesh-home." A religious tract from 1548 has fleshling "a sensual person." Flesh-company (1520s) was an old term for "sexual intercourse."
fleshy (adj.)
late 14c., "consisting of muscle and flesh," also "plump," from flesh (n.) + -y (2). Related: Fleshiness.
fleshless (adj.)
1580s, from flesh (n.) + -less.
fleshly (adj.)
Old English flæsclic "corporeal, carnal;" see flesh (n.) + -ly (1).
fleshpot (n.)
from flesh (n.) + pot (n.1); literally "pot in which flesh is boiled," hence "luxuries regarded with envy," especially in fleshpots of Egypt, from Exodus xvi:3:
fletch (v.)
"fit feathers to" (an arrow), 1650s, variant of fledge (v.) in sense "fit (an arrow) with feathers, altered by influence of fletcher. Related: Fletched; fletching.
fletcher (n.)
"arrow-maker," early 14c. (as a surname attested from 1203), from Old French flechier "maker of arrows," from fleche "arrow," which is probably from Frankish, from Proto-Germanic *fleug-ika- (compare Old Low German fliuca, Middle Dutch vliecke), from PIE *pluk- "to fly," extended form of root *pleu- "to flow."
fletcherism (n.)
dietary system emphasizing very thorough mastication, 1903, from -ism + name of Horace Fletcher (1849-1919), U.S. health enthusiast. Related: Fletcherize; fletcherized.
fleur-de-lis (n.)
also fleur-de-lys, mid-14c., from Anglo-French flour de lis "lily-flower" (see lily), from Old French, literally "flower of the iris," especially borne as a heraldic device on the royal arms of France. There is much dispute over what it is meant to resemble; perhaps an iris flower, or the head of a scepter, or a weapon of some sort. In Middle English often taken as flour delice "flower of joy, lovely flower" (hence Anglo-Latin flos deliciae); also flour de luce "flower of light" (as if from Latin lucem).
fleuret (n.)
"ornament in the form of a small flower," 1811, from French fleurette "small flower," diminutive of fleur "flower, blossom" (see flower (n.)). As a type of small sword from 1640s.
fleuron (n.)
"flower-shaped ornament," late 14c., floroun, from Old French floron (Modern French fleuron), from flor "flower" (see flower (n.)). Spelling modified 17c. in English based on French.
flew
past tense of fly (v.1).
flex (v.)
1520s, "to bend," usually of muscles, probably a back-formation from flexible. Related: Flexed; flexing.
flexible (adj.)
early 15c., "capable of being bent; mentally or spiritually pliant," from Old French flexible or directly from Latin flexibilis "that may be bent, pliant, flexible, yielding;" figuratively "tractable, inconstant," from flex-, past participle stem of flectere "to bend," which is of uncertain origin. Flexile (1630s) and flexive (1620s) have become rare. Related: Flexibly. Coles' dictionary (1717) has flexiloquent "speaking words of doubtful or double meaning."
flexibility (n.)
1610s, of physical things, from French flexibilité (in Old French, "weakness, vacillation") or directly from Late Latin flexibilitatem (nominative flexibilitas), from Latin flexibilis "pliant, yielding" (see flexible). Of immaterial things from 1783.
flexion (n.)
c. 1600, "bent part," also, in grammar, "modification of part of a word," from Latin flexionem (nominative flexio) "a bending, swaying; bend, turn, curve," noun of action from past participle stem of flectere "to bend" (see flexible). Flection (18c.) is more recent, less etymological, but said to be more common in modern English, perhaps by influence of affection, direction, where the -ct- is in the Latin word. According to some modern dictionaries, flexion is "confined to anatomical contexts." Related: Flexional; flectional.
flexography (n.)
type of rotary printing technique, 1952, from combining form of flexible (in reference to the plate used) + -graphy in the literal sense.
flexor (n.)
1610s, of muscles, Modern Latin, agent noun from stem of Latin flectere "to bend" (see flexible). Alternative form flector attested from 1660s (see flexion).
flextime (n.)
also short for flexitime, 1972, translating German Gleitzeit "sliding time." See flex + time (n.).
flexuous (adj.)
"full of bends or curves, winding, sinuous," c. 1600, from Latin flexuosus, from flexus (n.) "a bending," from flectere "to bend" (see flexible). From 1620s as "undulating."
flexure (n.)
1590s, "action of flexing or bending," from Latin flextura, from flectere "to bend" (see flexible). From 1620s as "flexed or bent condition; direction in which something is bent." Picked up in mathematics (1670s), geology (1833).
flibbertigibbet (n.)
1540s, "chattering gossip, flighty woman," probably a nonsense word meant to sound like fast talking; as the name of a devil or fiend it dates from c. 1600 (together with Frateretto, Hoberdidance, Tocobatto). OED lists 15 spellings and thinks flibbergib is the original.
flick (n.)
mid-15c., "light blow or stroke," probably imitative of a light blow with a whip. Earliest recorded use is in phrase not worth a flykke "useless." Meaning "quick turn of the wrist" is from 1897 in sports. As slang for "film," it is first attested 1926, a back-formation from flicker (v.), from their flickering appearance.
flick (v.)
1816, "to throw off with a jerk," from flick (n.). Meaning "strike lightly with a quick jerk" is from 1838. Related: Flicked; flicking.
flicker (n.2)
type of North American woodpecker, 1808, American English, said to be echoic of bird's note, or from black spots on plumage of the underparts that seem to flicker as it flits from tree to tree.
flicker (n.1)
1849, "wavering, unsteady light or flame;" 1857 as "a flickering," from flicker (v.).
flicker (v.)
Middle English flikeren, from Old English flicorian "to flutter, flap quickly and lightly, move the wings," originally of birds. Onomatopoeic and suggestive of quick motion. With Germanic verbal suffix indicating repeated or diminutive action (see -er (4)). The sense of "shine with a wavering light" is c. 1600 but was not common before 19c. Related: Flickered; flickering.
flier (n.)
see flyer.
flight (n.2)
"act of fleeing," c. 1200, flihht, not found in Old English, but presumed to have existed and cognate with Old Saxon fluht, Old Frisian flecht "act of fleeing," Dutch vlucht, Old High German fluht, German Flucht, Old Norse flotti, Gothic þlauhs, from Proto-Germanic *flugti-, suffixed form of PIE root *pleu- "to flow." To put (someone or something) to flight "rout, defeat" is from late 14c., the earlier verb form do o' flight (early 13c.).
flight (n.1)
"act of flying," Old English flyht "a flying, act or power of flying," from Proto-Germanic *flukhtiz (source also of Dutch vlucht "flight of birds," Old Norse flugr, Old High German flug, German Flug "flight"), from Proto-Germanic *flugti-, suffixed form of PIE root *pleu- "to flow."
Spelling altered late 14c. from Middle English fliht (see fight (v.)). Sense of "swift motion" is from mid-13c.. Meaning "an instance of flight" is 1785, originally of ballooning. Sense of "a number of things passing through the air together" is from mid-13c. Meaning "series of stairs between landings" is from 1703. Figuratively, "an excursion" of fancy, imagination, etc., from 1660s. Flight-path is from 1908; flight-test (v.) from 1919; flight-simulator from 1947 (originally in rocketry); flight-attendant from 1946.
flighty (adj.)
1550s, "swift," from flight (n.1) + -y (2). Sense of "fickle or frivolous" is from 1768, perhaps from notion of "given to 'flights' of imagination." Related: Flightiness.
flightless (adj.)
"incapable of flying," 1846, from flight (n.1) + -less. Related: Flightlessly; flightlessness.
flim-flam (n.)
also flimflam, 1530s, a contemptuous echoic construction, perhaps connected to some unrecorded dialectal word from Scandinavian (compare Old Norse flim "a lampoon"). From 1650s as a verb. Related: Flim-flammer.
flimsy (adj.)
1702, of unknown origin, perhaps a metathesis of film (n.) "gauzy covering" + -y (2). For the insertion of -s-, compare limpsy. Figuratively (of arguments, etc.) from 1750s. Related: Flimsily; flimsiness.
flinch (v.)
1570s, apparently a nasalized form of obsolete Middle English flecche "to bend, flinch," which probably is from Old French flechir "to bend" (Modern French fléchir), also flechier "to bend, turn aside, flinch," which probably are from Frankish *hlankjan or some other Germanic source, from Proto-Germanic *hlinc- (source also of Middle High German linken, German lenken "to bend, turn, lead"), from PIE root *kleng- "to bend, turn" (see link (n.)). There were nasalized form of the word in Old French as well (flenchir "to bend; give ground, retreat"). Related: Flinched; flinching. As a noun, "the action of flinching," from 1817.
flinders (n.)
"pieces, fragments, splinters," mid-15c., Scottish flendris, probably related to Norwegian flindra "chip, splinter," or Dutch flenter "fragment;" ultimately from the same PIE root that produced flint.
fling (n.)
early 14c., "attempt, attack," (in phrase make a fling), from fling (v.). Hence have a fling at, etc. "make a try." From 1560s as "a wild dash, an excited kicking up." Sense of "period of indulgence on the eve of responsibilities" first attested 1827. Meaning "vigorous dance" (associated with the Scottish Highlands) is from 1804.
fling (v.)
c. 1300, "to dash, run, rush," probably from or related to Old Norse flengja "to flog," which is of uncertain origin, perhaps from Proto-Germanic *flang- (source also of Old Swedish flenga "strike," Danish flænge "slash, gash"), from a nasalized variant of PIE root *plak- (2) "to strike." Meaning "to throw, cast, hurl" is from mid-14c. An obsolete word for "streetwalker, harlot" was fling-stink (1670s). Related: Flung; flinging, but in Middle English with past tense flang, past participle flungen.
flint (n.)
Old English flint "flint; a type of rock noted for hardness and for giving off sparks when struck," from Proto-Germanic *flintaz (source also of Middle Dutch vlint, Old High German flins, Danish flint), formerly said to be from a PIE root *(s)plei- "to splice, split" (source also of Greek plinthos "brick, tile," Old Irish slind "brick"). The transferred senses (in reference to hardness, etc.) were in Old English.
flinty (adj.)
1530s, "hard-hearted;" 1540s, "hard, impenetrable as flint," from flint + -y (2). Literal sense of "resembling flint" is from 1640s. Related: Flintily; flintiness.
flint-lock (n.)
also flintlock, 1680s as a type of gunlock in which fire is produced by a flint striking the hammer, from flint + lock (n.1) in the firearm sense.
flintstone (n.)
"hard silicious stone, flint," early 14c., from flint + stone (n.).
flip (n.2)
sailors' hot drink usually containing beer, brandy and sugar, 1690s, from flip (v.); so called from notion of it being "whipped up" or beaten.
flip (n.1)
1690s, "a flick, a snap;" see flip (v.). In reference to an overturning of the body, probably short for flip-flap (see flip-flop) "somersault in which the performer throws himself over on hands and feet alternately," 1670s, originally a move in (male) dancing.
flip (v.)
1590s "to fillip, to toss with the thumb," imitative, or perhaps a thinned form of flap, or else a contraction of fillip (q.v.), which also is held to be imitative. Meaning "toss as though with the thumb" is from 1610s. Meaning "to flip a coin" (to decide something) is by 1879. Sense of "get excited" is first recorded 1950; flip (one's) lid "lose one's head, go wild" is from 1949, American English; variant flip (one's) wig attested by 1952, but the image turns up earlier in popular record reviews ["Talking Boogie. Not quite as wig-flipping as reverse side--but a wig-flipper" Billboard, Sept. 17, 1949]. Related: Flipped. Flipping (adj.) as euphemism for fucking is British slang first recorded 1911 in D.H. Lawrence. Flip side (of a gramophone record) is by 1949.
flip (adj.)
"talkative and disrespectfully smart," see flippant.
flip-flop (n.)
also flip flop, "plastic thong beach sandal," by 1970, imitative of the sound of walking in them. Flip-flap had been used in various senses, mostly echoic or imitative of a kind of loose flapping movement, since 1520s:
Flip-flop in the general sense of "complete reversal of direction" dates from 1900; it began to be used in electronics in the 1930s in reference to switching circuits that alternate between two states. As a verb by 1897. Flop (n.) in the sense "a turn-round, especially in politics" is from 1880.
flippancy (n.)
1746, from flippant + abstract noun suffix -cy.
flippant (adj.)
c. 1600, "talkative, nimble in talk;" 1670s, "displaying unbecoming levity," apparently an extended form of flip (v.). The ending is perhaps modeled on other adjectives in -ant or a relic of the Middle English present participle ending -inde. Shortened form flip is attested from 1847. Related: Flippantly.
flipper (n.)
limb used to swim with, 1822, agent noun from flip (v.). Sense of "rubber fin for underwater swimming" is from 1945. Slang meaning "the hand" dates from 1836. Related: Flippers.
flip-top (adj.)
1955, of product packaging, from flip (v.) + top (n.1).
flirt (v.)
1550s, "to turn up one's nose, sneer at;" later "to rap or flick, as with the fingers" (1560s); "throw with a sudden movement," also "move in short, quick flights" (1580s). Perhaps imitative (compare flip (v.), also East Frisian flirt "a flick or light blow," flirtje "a giddy girl," which also might have fed into the English word), but perhaps rather from or influenced by flit (v.). Related: Flirted; flirting.
The main modern verbal sense of "play at courtship" (1777) probably developed from the noun (see flirt (n.)) but also could have grown naturally from the 16c. meaning "to flit inconstantly from object to object." To flirt a fan (1660s) was to snap it open or closed with a brisk jerk and was long considered part of the coquette's arsenal, which might have contributed to the sense shift. Or the word could have been influenced from French, where Old French fleureter meant "talk sweet nonsense," also "to touch a thing in passing," diminutive of fleur "flower" (n.) and metaphoric of bees skimming from flower to flower. French flirter "to flirt" is a 19c. borrowing from English.
flirt (n.)
1540s, "joke, jest, stroke of wit, contemptuous remark," from flirt (v.). By 1560s as "a pert young hussey" [Johnson], and Shakespeare has flirt-gill (i.e. Jill) "a woman of light or loose behavior" (Fletcher formalizes it as flirt-gillian), while flirtgig was a 17c. Yorkshire dialect word for "a giddy, flighty girl." One of the many fl- words suggesting loose, flapping motion and connecting the notions of flightiness and licentiousness. Compare English dialect and Scottish flisk "to fly about nimbly, skip, caper" (1590s); source of Scott's fliskmahoy "girl giddy and full of herself." The meaning "person who plays at courtship" is from 1732 (as the name of female characters in plays at least since 1689 (Aphra Behn's "The Widow Ranter")). Also in early use sometimes "person one flirts with," though by 1862 this was being called a flirtee.
flirtation (n.)
"amorous trifling; giddy behavior," 1718, noun of action from flirt (v.) as though Latin. The date, alas, gives the lie to Chesterfield's charming story of its coinage (in The World, Dec. 5, 1754) but not his refinement of the definition: "[F]lirtation is short of coquetry, and intimates only the first hints of approximation, which subsequent coquetry may reduce to those preliminary articles, that commonly end in a definitive treaty."
flirtatious (adj.)
1834, from flirtation + -ous. Related: Flirtatiously; flirtatiousness.
flirty (adj.)
1840, from flirt (v.) + -y (2). Related: Flirtiness.
flit (v.)
c. 1200, flitten, flytten, flutten "convey, move (a thing) from one place to another, take, carry away," also intransitive, "go away, move, migrate," from Old Norse flytja "to remove, bring," from Proto-Germanic *flutjan- "to float," from extended form of PIE root *pleu- "to flow." Intransitive sense "move lightly and swiftly" is from early 15c.; from c. 1500 as "remove from one habitation to another" (originally Northern English and Scottish)
Related: Flitted; flitting. As a noun, "a flitting, a removal," from 1835.
flitch (n.)
"side of bacon," Middle English flicche (c. 1200), "side of a slaughtered animal," especially the salted and cured side of a hog, from Old English flicce "flitch of bacon, ham," from Proto-Germanic *flekkja (source also of Old Norse flikki, Middle Low German vlicke "piece of flesh"). Not immediately from flesh (n.), but perhaps from the same PIE root, *pleik- "to tear" (see flay). The Flitch of Dunmow was presented every year at Little Dunmow, in Essex, to any married couple who could prove they had lived together without quarreling for a year and a day, a custom mentioned in early references as dating to mid-13c., revived 19c.
flite (v.)
"to scold," c. 1500, earlier "to content with words, chide, wrangle," from Old English flitan, cognate with Old High German flizzan "to strive." Related: Flited; fliting.
flitter (v.)
"fly with back-and-forth motion," 1540s, from flit with frequentative suffix. Flitter-mouse (1540s) is occasionally used in English, in imitation of German fledermaus "bat," from Old High German fledaron "to bat, to flutter." Related: Flittered; flittering. As a noun, from 1892.
flitty (adj.)
1640s, from flit (n.) + -y (2). Related: Flittiness.
flivver (n.)
"cheap car," later (after 1914) especially "Model-T Ford," by 1905, of uncertain origin. The word flivver was noted c. 1910 as a new theater slang word come into common use: "A flivver is something that is not a success, perhaps not an outright, hideous failure, but certainly a long way from the top." [Boston Globe, Feb. 20, 1910] A character in a comical column from The Philadelphia Inquirer of Aug. 16, 1909, says it is "... from the verb 'to fliv,' meaning a foul, a bungled miss."
float (v.)
late Old English flotian "to rest on the surface of water" (intransitive; class II strong verb; past tense fleat, past participle floten), from Proto-Germanic *flotan "to float" (source also of Old Norse flota, Middle Dutch vloten, Old High German flozzan, German flössen), from PIE *plud-, extended form of root *pleu- "to flow."
Meaning "drift about, hover passively" is from c. 1300. Transitive sense of "to lift up, cause to float" (of water, etc.) is from c. 1600; that of "set (something) afloat" is from 1778 (originally of financial operations). Of motion through air, from 1630s. Meaning "hover dimly before the eyes" is from 1775. Related: Floated; floating. A floating rib (by 1802) is so called because the anterior ends are not connected to the rest.
float (n.)
apparently an early Middle English merger of three related Old English nouns, flota "boat, fleet," flote "troop, flock," flot "body of water, sea;" all from the source of float (v.). The early senses were the now-mostly-obsolete ones of the Old English words: "state of floating" (early 12c.), "swimming" (mid-13c.); "a fleet of ships; a company or troop" (c. 1300); "a stream, river" (early 14c.). From c. 1300 as an attachment for buoyancy on a fishing line or net; early 14c. as "raft." Meaning "platform on wheels used for displays in parades, etc." is from 1888, probably from earlier sense of "flat-bottomed boat" (1550s). As a type of fountain drink, by 1915.
floatation (n.)
1806, the older, more etymological, but less popular spelling of flotation.
floater (n.)
"one who or that which floats," 1717, agent noun from float (v.). From 1847 in political slang for an independent voter (but with suggestion of purchasability); 1859 as "one who frequently changes place of residence or employment." Meaning "dead body found in water" is 1890, U.S. slang.