flap
Pronunciation: (flap), [key]
— v., n. flapped, flap•ping,
—v.i.
- to swing or sway back and forth loosely, esp. with noise: A loose shutter flapped outside the window.
- to move up and down, as wings; flap the wings, or make similar movements.
- to strike a blow with something broad and flexible.
- to become excited or confused, esp. under stress: a seasoned diplomat who doesn't flap easily.
—v.t.
- to move (wings, arms, etc.) up and down.
- to cause to swing or sway loosely, esp. with noise.
- to strike with something broad and flat.
- to toss, fold, shut, etc., smartly, roughly, or noisily.
- to pronounce (a sound) with articulation resembling that of a flap:r's. The British often flap their
—n.
- something flat and broad that is attached at one side only and hangs loosely or covers an opening: the flap of an envelope; the flap of a pocket.
- either of the two segments of a book jacket folding under the book's front and back covers.
- one leaf of a folding door, shutter, or the like.
- a flapping motion.
- the noise produced by something that flaps.
- a blow given with something broad and flat.
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- a state of nervous excitement, commotion, or disorganization.
- an emergency situation.
- scandal; trouble.
- a portion of skin or flesh that is partially separated from the body and may subsequently be transposed by grafting.
- a movable surface used for increasing the lift or drag of an airplane.
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- a rapid flip of the tongue tip against the upper teeth or alveolar ridge, as in the r-sound in a common British pronunciation of very, or the t-sound in the common American pronunciation of water.
- a trill.
- a flipping out of the lower lip from a position of pressure against the upper teeth so as to produce an audible pop, as in emphatic utterances containing f-sounds or v-sounds.
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- Also calledbackflap hinge,flap&prim; hinge&sec;.a hinge having a strap or plate for screwing to the face of a door, shutter, or the like. See illus. underhinge.
- one leaf of a hinge.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.