What does "flog" mean?
A contemptible, often arrogant person; a wanker.
Flog
/flɑɡ/ noun, verb, slang
noun, verb, slang ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A contemptible, often arrogant person; a wanker.
- Grammar: flog is listed as noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: baste, bastinado, beat, beating.
- Useful contrasts: clemency, deemphasize, keep.
- Usage evidence: For some half-hour he tried to comfort himself with an idea that he could get hold of Captain Marrable and maul him; that it would be a thing permissible for him, a magistrate, to go forth with a whip and flog the man, and then perhaps shoot him, because the man had been fortunate in love where he had been unfortunate.
How to use "flog"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "flog" 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 "flog" 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 "flog" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "flog" 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 "flog" 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 "baste" 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 "flog", 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 A contemptible, often arrogant person; a wanker. Australia, derogatory, informal
"It follows the ejection of a supporter who allegedly ran towards umpire Mathew Nicholls while calling him a "bald-headed flog" at half-time of the Carlton-Brisbane Lions match last Saturday."
- 2 A weblog designed to look authentic, but actually developed as part of a commercial marketing strategy to promote some product or service. Internet
"Though a handful of viral videos and flogs have captured significant interest, the vast majority hardly register with consumers."
Verb
- 1 To whip or scourge as punishment. transitive
- 2 beat severely with a whip or rod wordnet
- 3 To use something to extreme; to abuse. transitive
"I did seven laps of Fyshwick with the mechanic today. I was turning lots of heads on the last few, people must of thought I was nuts, flogging the car then stopping, then driving slow then flogging it again."
- 4 beat with a cane wordnet
- 5 To sell. UK, slang, transitive
"And then there's my part time job at Telstra Bigpond flogging their cable network for just $67.55/month long term cost, a BARGAIN, and the other part time job flogging Foxtel at something like $50/month."
Show 4 more definitions
- 6 To steal something. Australia, New-Zealand, transitive
- 7 To defeat easily or convincingly. Australia, New-Zealand, transitive
"The Swannies got on a real roll over rounds 16/17 & 18 of 1987. In consecutive SCG matches, they flogged the Eags 30.21 to 10.11, followed that with a 36.20 to 11.7 demolition of the Dons and finally a 31.12 to 15.17 thrashing of Richmond."
- 8 To overexploit (land), as by overgrazing, overstocking, etc. Australia, transitive
"The environment is paying dearly as producers flog their land. Sustainable agriculture needs a new generation of energised science and technology-trained farmers"
- 9 To beat away charcoal dust etc. using a flogger.
Antonyms
Example
"For some half-hour he tried to comfort himself with an idea that he could get hold of Captain Marrable and maul him; that it would be a thing permissible for him, a magistrate, to go forth with a whip and flog the man, and then perhaps shoot him, because the man had been fortunate in love where he had been unfortunate."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "flog"?
Common synonyms include: baste, bastinado, beat, beating, belabor, belt.
How do you use "flog" in a sentence?
For some half-hour he tried to comfort himself with an idea that he could get hold of Captain Marrable and maul him; that it would be a thing permissible for him, a magistrate, to go forth with a whip and flog the man, and then perhaps shoot him, because the man had been fortunate in love where he had been unfortunate.
How do you pronounce "flog"?
Pronounced /flɑɡ/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English *floggen (suggested by flogge (“hammer, sledge”), from Old English *floggian, a stem variant of Proto-Germanic *flukkōną (“to beat”), itself a secondary zero-grade iterative with unetymological -u-, derived from *flōkaną. The original zero-grade iterative *flakkōną had been misinterpreted as an o-grade. See flack (“to beat”), also as a dialectal noun "a blow, slap". Cognate with Scots flog (“a blow, stripe, flogging”, noun), Scots flog (“thin strip of wood”), Norwegian flak (“a piece torn off, strip”). Alternatively, a back-formation from flogger, from Low German flogger (“a flail”).
Etymology 2
Blend of fake + blog.