flash
/flæʃ/ verb, noun, adjective, proper noun
Forms flashes flashing flashed the Flash
- verb (transitive) To cause to shine briefly or intermittently. “He flashed the light at the water, trying to see what made the noise.”
- verb (intransitive) To blink; to shine or illuminate intermittently. “The light flashed on and off.”
- verb (intransitive) To be visible briefly. “The scenery flashed by quickly.”
- verb (transitive) To make visible briefly. “A number will be flashed on the screen.”
- verb (ambitransitive, informal) To expose one's intimate body part or undergarment, often momentarily and unintentionally. (Contrast streak.) “She flashed a vocalist at a rock concert.”
- verb (figurative) To break forth like a sudden flood of light; to show a momentary brilliance.
- verb To flaunt; to display in a showy manner. “He flashed a wad of hundred-dollar bills.”
- verb (African-American Vernacular) To show a gang sign or similar hand gesture. “I knew he was serious when he flashed a Bloods sign.”
- noun A sudden, short, temporary burst of light.
- noun A very short amount of time.
- noun (colloquial, US) A flashlight; an electric torch.
- noun (figuratively) A sudden and brilliant burst, as of genius or wit.
- noun (figurative, uncountable) Pizzazz, razzle-dazzle.
- noun Material left around the edge of a moulded part at the parting line of the mould.
- noun (UK, Cockney) The strips of bright cloth or buttons worn around the collars of market traders.
- noun (juggling) A pattern where each prop is thrown and caught only once.
- adjective (British, Australia and New Zealand, slang) Expensive-looking and demanding attention; stylish; showy.
- adjective (UK, of a person) Having plenty of ready money.
- adjective (UK, of a person) Liable to show off expensive possessions or money.
- adjective (US, slang) Occurring very rapidly, almost instantaneously.
Synonyms
glint beep gleam instant jiffy twinkle bat of an eye bit blink of an eye crack eyeblink glimpse half a mo jiff jot minute mo moment New York minute New York second flashing heartbeat split second trice twinkling wink ostentation fanfare flare news bulletin
Antonyms
aeon spell age ages blue moon coon's age crow's age dog's age donkey's years eld eon eternity
Etymology
In some senses, from Middle English flasshen, a variant of flasken, flaskien (“to sprinkle, splash”), which was likely of imitative origin; in other senses probably of North Germanic origin akin to Swedish dialectal flasa (“to burn brightly, blaze”), related to flare. Compare also Icelandic flasa (“to rush, go hastily”).
From Middle English flashe, flaske, also found as flosche and flushe (whence modern English flosh and flush), used in Middle and modern English for bodies of water with varying emphasis on them being "pools" or "marshes". It is not entirely clear whether these constitute a single term with varied spellings, or have distinct etymologies. The form flash, flashe is often suggested to be from Old French flache, French flaque, which is of Germanic origin, akin to Middle Dutch vlacke (“an estuary, flats with stagnant pools”). See flush for more on that form.
From flash.
Webster’s 1913
- verb To burst or break forth with a sudden and transient flood of flame and light; as, the lighting flashes vividly; the powder flashed.
- verb To break forth, as a sudden flood of light; to burst instantly and brightly on the sight; to show a momentary brilliancy; to come or pass like a flash.
- verb To send out in flashes; to cause to burst forth with sudden flame or light.
- verb To convey as by a flash; to light up, as by a sudden flame or light; as, to flash a message along the wires; to flash conviction on the mind.
Etymology [Cf. OE. flaskien, vlaskien to pour, sprinkle, dial. Sw. flasa to blaze, E. flush, flare.]
Etymology [Perh. due to confusion between flash of light and plash, splash.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “flash”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details