flagging
1 Americannoun
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flagstones collectively.
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a pavement or walk of flagstones.
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of flagging1
First recorded in 1535–45; flag 3 + -ing 2
Origin of flagging2
Explanation
If something is flagging, it's worn out or weak. A flagging political campaign is running out of steam, losing the energy it needs to be successful. If your career is flagging, it's languishing or fading — you might need to go back to school and start a new one. Flagging public support for a new school might spell the end of the project. A different kind of flagging is the sort you walk on. If your patio is made of flagging, it's paved in stones — flagstones, to be specific. The "weakened" meaning of flagging comes from an early meaning of flag, "to flap about loosely."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas recently published a report for clients, flagging makers of bearings as potential “picks and shovels” plays for the robotics boom.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 15, 2026
From remote-controlled trucks delivering life-saving aid in dangerous settings to mobile phone data analysis flagging mass displacement, humanitarians are eyeing ways in which artificial intelligence can speed up and improve their operations.
From Barron's ● Jul. 10, 2026
Since the pandemic, millions of Chinese youth have dealt with increasing financial pressure, high unemployment rates and a flagging economy.
From BBC ● Jul. 3, 2026
“It’s a flagging industry. ... The industry will have to consolidate to survive,” said C. Kerry Fields, a USC Marshall School of Business economics professor.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 2, 2026
When it was obvious that the old dog was flagging, the Labrador turned off the quiet, graveled road and into the shade of a pinewood beside a clear, fast-running creek.
From "The Incredible Journey" by Sheila Burnford
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
