What does "flap" mean?
Anything broad and flexible that hangs loose, or that is attached by one side or end and is easily moved.
Flap
/flæp/ noun, verb, slang
noun, verb, slang ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Anything broad and flexible that hangs loose, or that is attached by one side or end and is easily moved.
- Grammar: flap is listed as noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: flutter, fuss, ado, aerodynamic flap.
- Useful contrasts: calm, compose, exposure.
- Usage evidence: Whales flap their tails up and down and sharks from side to side.
How to use "flap"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "flap" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "flap" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "flap" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "flap" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "flap" is acting as noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "flutter" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "flap", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 Anything broad and flexible that hangs loose, or that is attached by one side or end and is easily moved.
"a flap of a garment"
- 2 any broad thin and limber covering attached at one edge; hangs loose or projects freely wordnet
- 3 A hinged leaf.
"the flaps of a table"
- 4 a movable airfoil that is part of an aircraft wing; used to increase lift or drag wordnet
- 5 A hinged surface on the trailing edge of the wings of an aeroplane, used to increase lift and drag.
Show 12 more definitions
- 6 a movable piece of tissue partly connected to the body wordnet
- 7 A side fin of a ray.
- 8 the motion made by flapping up and down wordnet
- 9 The motion of anything broad and loose, or a sound or stroke made with it.
"the flap of a sail"
- 10 an excited state of agitation wordnet
- 11 A controversy, scandal, stir, or upset.
"The comment caused quite a flap in the newspapers."
- 12 A consonant sound made by a single muscle contraction, such as the sound /ɾ/ in the standard American English pronunciation of body.
- 13 A piece of tissue incompletely detached from the body, as an intermediate stage of plastic surgery.
- 14 The labia, the vulva. in-plural, slang, vulgar
- 15 A blow or slap (especially to the face). obsolete
"1450, Palladius on Husbondrieː Ware the horn and heels lest they fling a flap to thee."
- 16 A young prostitute. obsolete
"Fall to your flap, my Masters, kisse and clip. […] Come hither, you foule flappes."
- 17 A connected component of the induced subgraph formed by deleting a set of vertices.
Verb
- 1 To move (something broad and loose) up and down. transitive
"The crow slowly flapped its wings."
- 2 pronounce with a flap, of alveolar sounds wordnet
- 3 To move loosely back and forth. intransitive
"The flag flapped in the breeze."
- 4 make a fuss; be agitated wordnet
- 5 For a goalkeeper to weakly attempt to play a flighted ball with the hands, failing to control it. intransitive
"Former Turkey goalkeeper Rustu Recber flapped at his first Delap throw but was given a soft free-kick by referee Antony Gautier."
Show 7 more definitions
- 6 to flutter noisily when moved by the wind wordnet
- 7 To pronounce (something) as a flap consonant. transitive
- 8 move in a wavy pattern or with a rising and falling motion wordnet
- 9 To be pronounced with a flap consonant. intransitive
- 10 move with a flapping motion wordnet
- 11 To be advertised as being available and then unavailable (or available by different routes) in rapid succession. intransitive
- 12 move with a thrashing motion wordnet
Example
"Whales flap their tails up and down and sharks from side to side."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "flap"?
Common synonyms include: flutter, fuss, ado, aerodynamic flap, aeroplane, agitation.
How do you use "flap" in a sentence?
Whales flap their tails up and down and sharks from side to side.
How do you pronounce "flap"?
Pronounced /flæp/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English flap, flappe (“a slap; blow; buffet; fly-flap; something flexible or loose; flap”), related to Saterland Frisian Flappert (“wing, flipper”), Middle Dutch flabbe (“a blow; slap on the face; fly-flap; flap”) (modern Dutch flap (“flap”)), Middle Low German flabbe, vlabbe, flebbe, from the verb (see below). Related also to English flab and flabby.
Etymology 2
From Middle English flappen (“to flap, clap, slap, strike”), related to Dutch flappen (“to flap”), German Low German flappen (“to flap”), German flappen (“to flap”), Dutch flabberen (“to flit, flap”). Probably ultimately imitative.