flail 1 of 2

verb

Definition of flailnext
1
as in to flutter
to move or cause to move with a striking motion started to flail his arms wildly when he spied a bat in the house

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in to whip
to strike repeatedly with something long and thin or flexible gruesome evidence that the prisoner had been flailed

Synonyms & Similar Words

flail

2 of 2

noun

as in bludgeon

Related Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of flail
Verb
Tidwell fell behind in the count 3-1 to Duran, but got Duran to flail at a sweeper out of the zone for strike two, then locked him up on another sweeper to punch him out. — Justice Delos Santos, Mercury News, 5 Aug. 2026 Wang joined in June of last year as the centerpiece of CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s effort to revamp his company’s flailing artificial intelligence strategy. — Jonathan Vanian, CNBC, 5 Aug. 2026 So kudos to the extras who steal scenes from them in the background, flailing like avant-garde dancers when a vicious mental parasite leaps from grandmothers to joggers to security guards on a quest to find something awful. — Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 30 July 2026 Flushed and flailing during Schauf’s final countdown, her gum-chewing getting a little more exaggerated with each second, Cooper quipped that her handiwork might be better sealed under a closed casket. — John Semley, Harpers Magazine, 28 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for flail
Recent Examples of Synonyms for flail
  1. flutter
  2. whip
  3. bludgeon
  4. flap
  5. hide
  6. cane
  7. slash
  8. cudgel
Verb
  • For Arbaeen, the lights inside the shrine and the flags fluttering from its golden dome are switched to red – the color of vengeance.
    — Jane Arraf, NPR, 10 Aug. 2026
  • Some people feel a racing heartbeat or fluttering in their chest.
    — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of flutter
Verb
  • Stidham whipped a pass to Pat Bryant on a comeback route for 15 yards on the game’s first play.
    — Nick Kosmider, New York Times, 15 Aug. 2026
  • The team – last minute – got the recipe, sourced quahogs and whipped them up.
    — Moira McCarthy, Boston Herald, 15 Aug. 2026
Definition of whip
Noun
  • Iran practices honest bludgeon work.
    — Voice of the People, New York Daily News, 4 Apr. 2026
  • But Beshear hasn’t turned Trump-bashing into a 24/7 vocation, or a weight-lifting contest where the winner is the critic wielding the heaviest bludgeon.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 1 Feb. 2026
Definition of bludgeon
Verb
  • The cast are clustered around a table of props and despite her disappointment at the lack of hag wigs, Dale Dickey is flapping a fishing net like a seafaring matador.
    — Antonia Blyth, Deadline, 14 Aug. 2026
  • Northern cardinals may flirt over lunch, with a male passing a choice bite to a female, while fledglings flap, gape and beg their parents for a snack.
    — Lauren Paige Richeson, USA Today, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of flap
Verb
  • Though males are wingless and females can fly short distances, that reproductive efficiency — combined with its tiny size and penchant for hiding in wood — has supercharged a rapid spread across South Africa.
    — Jack Bantock, CNN Money, 13 Aug. 2026
  • Bosch reminded the public to lock their vehicles and hide valuables, noting that thieves often scan for unlocked cars by looking for extended side mirrors.
    — Peter D'Oench, CBS News, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of hide
Noun
  • Procaccini is recovering from a broken leg and uses a walker or cane.
    — Caroline Foreback, CBS News, 10 Aug. 2026
  • These are people who use a cane, crutches, a rollator or a wheelchair some of the time rather than all of the time.
    — Keely Cat-Wells, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of cane
Verb
  • One of those attacks was a bear slashing a man’s chest outside his home in North Canaan.
    — Sean Krofssik, Hartford Courant, 10 Aug. 2026
  • Faced with federal cuts that slashed billions annually from public healthcare, state legislators touted $250 million Monday in funding to help salvage California’s public hospital system.
    — Luis Melecio-Zambrano, Mercury News, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of slash
Noun
  • While lawmakers have mostly thrown their backing behind the bill, some are wary of granting the president even more leeway to impose import taxes as a foreign policy cudgel.
    — Kate Nishimura, Footwear News, 31 July 2026
  • Politicians on the right, from Bailey to Trump, have frequently used Illinois’ move to eliminate money bond as a cudgel against Democrats, blaming Chicago’s violent crime on the change.
    — Dan Petrella, Chicago Tribune, 18 July 2026
Definition of cudgel

Browse Nearby Words

flag-wavers
flail
flailed
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Cite this Entry

“Flail.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/flail. Accessed 17 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on flail

Nglish: Translation of flail for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about flail

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