flail
Americannoun
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flails
plural
-
an instrument for threshing grain, consisting of a staff or handle with a freely swinging stick or bar attached to one end of it.
-
a similar instrument used as a weapon of war.
verb (used without object)
-
flails,
present (3rd person singular)
-
flailed,
past participle, past
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flailing
present participle
-
to move about randomly and wildly.
Running down to the lake I hit a patch of mud and found myself flailing all over the path, arms and legs flying.
-
to make desperate or unproductive attempts to respond to a challenging problem, awkward situation, etc. (usually followed by around orabout ).
He makes things worse by flailing about with administrative solutions to educational problems he doesn't understand.
For six years the government flailed, proposing one ineffectual program after another.
verb (used with object)
-
flails,
present (3rd person singular)
-
flailed,
past participle, past
-
flailing
present participle
-
to thresh (grain) with a flail.
Together they managed to clear land, seed wheat, flail the grain by hand, and grind it into flour.
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to beat, strike, attack, etc., repeatedly with or as if with a flail.
I flailed the water with a variety of lures for hours, and caught three bass.
The infantry closed in while artillery support flailed the enemy positions.
-
to move (a limb, one’s body, etc.) randomly and wildly (often followed by around orabout ).
Gasping and choking, he flailed a hand in my general direction.
-
to swing (something) about as if using a flail.
She violently flailed the flare around, trying to catch the attention of the figure on the hill.
adjective
noun
-
an implement used for threshing grain, consisting of a wooden handle with a free-swinging metal or wooden bar attached to it
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a weapon so shaped used in the Middle Ages
verb
-
(tr) to beat or thrash with or as if with a flail
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to move or be moved like a flail; thresh about
with arms flailing
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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flailsimple
-
flailssimple
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have flailedperfect
-
has flailedperfect
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am flailingprogressive
-
are flailingprogressive
-
is flailingprogressive
-
have been flailingperfect progressive
-
has been flailingperfect progressive
Past
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flailedsimple
-
had flailedperfect
-
was flailingprogressive
-
were flailingprogressive
-
had been flailingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of flail
First recorded before 1100; Middle English fleil (noun), Old English flighel (probably misspelling of unattested flegil ), cognate with Dutch vlegel, German Flegel, from unattested West Germanic flagil-, from Late Latin flagellum “flail,” Latin: “whip, scourge”; see flagellum
Explanation
To flail means to wave around wildly. If you are stranded on a deserted island and you see a ship in the distance, it’s a good idea to flail your arms in the air to get the captain’s attention. Flail originates with the Latin word flagellum, which is a whip. It is also related to the noun flail, a stick with a swinging attachment to it, used to thresh grain. As a verb, it most often refers to arms, but can also involve the whole body, especially if someone is a very wild dancer. Other things can flail as well. If someone admits that his business is flailing, it’s probably lacking direction and not doing very well.
Vocabulary lists containing flail
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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.
See Examples For:
While investment and consumption flail, China’s dollar-denominated exports power on, surging almost 20% year-over-year last month on demand for artificial intelligence and clean-energy products.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 16, 2026
With the USA bats continuing to flail against Rodriguez, the Venezuelans doubled their lead in the top of the fifth inning.
From Barron's ● Mar. 18, 2026
Greg, seeing his daughter flail, decides to do whatever he can to help.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 9, 2026
"When other fish get caught in those nets they sort of flail and it sends out a vibration underwater, sort of like ringing the dinner bell," says Prof Pepin-Neff.
From BBC ● Oct. 3, 2025
And just like that, I was starting to flail, tossed without warning into deep water, drowning and desperate.
From "The Joy Luck Club" by Amy Tan
Cure turns toward Aldridge and flails his arms.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 19, 2023
At times it’s hard to recognize the ascending superstar as he flails at pitches out of the strike zone and, despite his seemingly unflappable persona, shows unmistakable signs of pressing.
From Seattle Times ● May 4, 2023
Even here, within the safe space of his own overlong and clangy movies, he flails for an identity.
From New York Times ● Mar. 16, 2023
But the drama flails in its final stages.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 11, 2023
They beat it out with flails, he and the woman together.
From "The Good Earth" by Pearl S. Buck
He and Gail gave up their salaries and lived off credit cards while Dave flailed, trying to keep their creditors at bay.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
Stagflation set in, and the Nixon, Ford and Carter administrations all flailed helplessly at the beast.
From Barron's ● Mar. 13, 2026
They attacked the game, while Rangers flailed wildly.
From BBC ● Sep. 25, 2025
His fastball was more than a tick down from his season average as he flailed with his command early.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 21, 2025
She flailed a hand at Aru and Mini.
From "Aru Shah and the End of Time" by Roshani Chokshi
"There are farmers really flailing away" and drastically concerned about fuel costs, Joe Logan, interim president of the Ohio Farmers Union, told AFP.
From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026
Now a respected New Yorker magazine writer promoting his forthcoming book on the U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Michael is contacted by Lou, who has been flailing since returning to the States.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
A humanoid’s frantic attempts to stay upright—arms flailing, legs skittering—bears an uncanny resemblance to the choreographed collapses of Charlie Chaplin or Buster Keaton.
From Slate ● Sep. 27, 2026
Sir Paul Smith, the doyen of British fashion, is flailing around in his office with two large rubber chickens and making them squeak them with gusto.
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026
He used to laugh at me, flailing in front of him.
From "The Rock and the River" by Kekla Magoon
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.
