flog

American  

[flog, flawg] / flɒg, flɔg /

verb (used with object)

• flogs,
  present (3rd person singular)
• flogged,
  past participle,  past
• flogging
  present participle

1. to beat with a whip, stick, etc., especially as punishment; whip; scourge.

   Synonyms:

   lash, thrash

2. Slang.

   1. to sell, especially aggressively or vigorously.

   2. to promote; publicize.

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flog British  

/ flɒɡ /

verb

1. (tr) to beat harshly, esp with a whip, strap, etc

2. slang (tr) to sell

3. (intr) (of a sail) to flap noisily in the wind

4. (intr) to make progress by painful work

5. to steal

6. 1. to harp on some long discarded subject

   2. to pursue the solution of a problem long realized to be insoluble

7. to persuade a person so persistently of the value of (an idea or venture) that he or she loses interest in it

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flog Idioms  

1. see beat a dead horse.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• flogger
  noun
• flogging
  noun
• overflog
  verb (used with object)
• floggable
  adjective
• unfloggable
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• flogging
  present
• flogged
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• flog
  simple
• flogs
  simple
• have flogged
  perfect
• has flogged
  perfect
• am flogging
  progressive
• are flogging
  progressive
• is flogging
  progressive
• have been flogging
  perfect progressive
• has been flogging
  perfect progressive

Past

• flogged
  simple
• had flogged
  perfect
• was flogging
  progressive
• were flogging
  progressive
• had been flogging
  perfect progressive

Future

• will flog
  simple
• will have flogged
  perfect
• will be flogging
  progressive
• will have been flogging
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of flog

First recorded in 1670–80; perhaps blend of flay and jog, variant of jag ¹ “to prick, slash”; but cf. flagellate

Explanation

To flog is to beat or hit, especially with a tool like a stick or rod. A cruel trainer might flog an unruly horse with a whip. When you flog someone, you beat them as a way of punishing or controlling them. In the old days, teachers were allowed to flog misbehaving students, and it wasn't uncommon for parents to flog their children as punishment. In fact, the word flog first appeared as school slang in the late 1600s — it's thought to be a shortened form of the Latin word flagellare, "flagellate," or "whip."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

flog flogs flogged flogging

Valued at $852 billion, OpenAI does not need to flog $45 Bloop-the-bot-covered tote bags that say “Building Things.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026

You’re not out to fleece anyone with egregiously high commissions or merely befriend another member because you want to flog the latest financial product.

From MarketWatch ● May 29, 2026

They are not alone, he said, adding: "You have some clubs who have had to flog their tickets outside the stadium on the day."

From BBC ● Feb. 12, 2026

“If you’re right here at the top of the curve, functioning at a high level, if I flog your nicotinic receptors, you’re actually going to have a decline in performance,” he adds.

From Slate ● Jun. 11, 2025

“Half the time you don’t even bother locking it. You’re probably hoping someone’ll flog it so you can collect the insurance.”

From "I Am the Messenger" by Markus Zusak

And it has a sense of humor, opening with a sidewalk preacher who flogs her Bible app.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 24, 2025

Hawley's character are as outsized as ever, and the mythical Fahr-goh accent still flogs the ear – but the overwrought, flowery speeches that drowned the 2020 season aren’t as overwhelming.

From Salon ● Nov. 21, 2023

Aside from that, he may have a stroll around the marché, the vast bazaar at the back of the Palais that flogs cut-price monster romps and action movies to the international buyers.

From The Guardian ● May 17, 2012

Avon flogs make-up and skin cream under its own brand.

From Economist ● Apr. 4, 2012

It frets and consumes him, weighs him down, and flogs him on again.

From Maxim Gorki by Hans Ostwald

Wholesale costs in the U.S. jumped again in August, flogged by higher gasoline prices, in the first of two inflation reports that will dictate if the Federal Reserve raises interest rates next week.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026

Mr. Mamdani’s team flogged a 2001 city memo that estimated the city could face 35,000 potential plaintiffs from “toxic tort cases that might arise in the next few decades.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026

Scores of bare-chested flagellants with covered faces walked barefoot through the dusty streets of Pampanga province's San Fernando as they flogged their backs with bamboo whips in scorching heat.

From Barron's ● Apr. 3, 2026

Ben Stokes, England's best seamer, flogged himself with the old ball then gave the second new ball to Potts and Brydon Carse – England's worst seamers.

From BBC ● Jan. 6, 2026

I had read a thousand times the story of Jesus’ arrest—how soldiers had slapped Him, laughed at Him, flogged Him.

From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom

But opportunities like last week’s flogging of the new Porsche 911 Turbo S on Circuito Ascari are rare and require considerable schlepping.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2025

Australia were similarly aggressive at the start of their chase, openers Travis Head and Matt Short flogging 78 from the first seven overs.

From BBC ● Sep. 29, 2024

After witnessing a sailor’s flogging, Cândido led a revolt against regular whipping by officers in 1910.

From Seattle Times ● Jan. 29, 2024

With that kind of all-hands-on-deck flogging of the lie, what's surprising is how the nonsense is not even more popular.

From Salon ● Jan. 5, 2024

“See,” he said, “they come quickly; they are flogging the horses, and galloping as hard as they can.”

From "Dracula" by Bram Stoker

Related Words

• castigate
• chastise
• spank