flail
/fˈleɪl/FLAYL
/fˈleɪl/FLAYL
Meaninga whip
Common meaning: a threshing tool
Other meanings: to thrash about
- flaila whip, scourgeLewis & Short, Latin Dictionary (1879), p. 755 · scan
Journey through time
- Latinflagellum, -ī‘a whip, scourge’
- Old Frenchflaelsource
- Englishmeaning shiftsa whip, scourge → a threshing toolflail‘a threshing tool’ · today
flail also in: flagellate
Sources & notes
Meaning: “Meaning” is the sense that emerges from the word’s roots; “Common meaning” is today’s everyday sense. Both written by us.
Pronunciation
- UK IPA: converted from the US form by rule (unchecked). Respelling: generated.
- No UK recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-GB voice.
- US IPA: CMUdict (BSD-2), converted to IPA by rule. Respelling: generated.
- No US recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-US voice.
Origin: Built on Latin flagellum ‘a whip, scourge’.
Did you know: our wording, based on Lewis & Short, Latin Dictionary (1879), entry flagellum, p. 755 · dictionary scan
Roots
- flagellum, -ī Latin “a whip, scourge”
Related words
Building blocks are an automatic split · open in app