flagging
1 Americannoun
-
flagstones collectively.
-
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.
She endorsed the review as a necessary evolution of “a very important system that we benefit from here in California in a unique way,” while flagging what makes UC an outlier nationally.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026
Tech suppliers historically have been accommodating toward customers at times of flagging demand.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026
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
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 might be different if he were flagging down a passing car or trying to phone for help, but typing, in and of itself, is not an inherently dramatic activity.
From "Me Talk Pretty One Day" by David Sedaris
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.
