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belly flop
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noun Northern and North Midland U.S.
an awkward, usually unintentional dive in which the front of the body strikes the water horizontally, the abdomen or chest bearing the brunt of the impact.
a maneuver with a sled in which the sledder runs with the sled to gain momentum and jumps forward to land on top of the sled as it moves through the snow.
a failure; flop.
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Question 1 of 7
Which sentence is correct?
Sometimes belly flopper .
Origin of belly flop
First recorded in 1890–95
Words nearby belly flop
bellyboard, belly bust, bellybutton, bellybutton surgery, belly dance, belly flop, bellyful, belly girt, belly-helve, belly-land, belly landing
Other definitions for belly flop (2 of 2)
belly-flop
[ bel-ee-flop ]
/ ˈbɛl iˌflɒp /
verb (used without object), bel·ly-flopped, bel·ly-flop·ping.Northern and North Midland U.S.
to do a belly flop, as in diving or sledding.
to land or throw oneself heavily down on one's belly: so tired he just belly-flopped on the bed.
Origin of belly-flop
First recorded in 1930–35
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use belly flop in a sentence
There, the vehicle will use a similar belly flop to arrest itself as it falls through Mars’s thin atmosphere.
SpaceX’s Starship flies, belly flops, and bursts into flames|Charlie Wood|December 10, 2020|Popular-Science
British Dictionary definitions for belly flop
belly flop
noun
a dive into water in which the body lands horizontally
another name for belly landing
verb belly-flop -flops, -flopping or -flopped
(intr) to perform a belly flop
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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