flake

¹ American  

[fleyk] / fleɪk /

noun

1. a small, flat, thin piece, especially one that has been or become detached from a larger piece or mass.

   flakes of old paint.

2. any small piece or mass.

   a flake of snow.

3. a stratum or layer.

4. Slang. an eccentric person; screwball.

   My sister's new boyfriend is a real flake—I can't imagine why she goes out with him.

5. Slang. cocaine.

6. a usually broad, often irregular piece of stone struck from a larger core and sometimes retouched to form a flake tool.

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verb (used without object)

flaked, flaking

1. to peel off or separate in flakes.

2. to fall in flakes, as snow.

verb (used with object)

flaked, flaking

1. to remove in flakes.

2. to break flakes or chips from; break into flakes.

   to flake fish for a casserole.

3. to cover with or as if with flakes.

4. to form into flakes.

flake ² American  

[fleyk] / fleɪk /

noun

1. a frame, as for drying fish.

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flake ³ American  

[fleyk] / fleɪk /

noun

1. fake.

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verb (used with object)

flaked, flaking

1. fake.

2. to lower (a fore-and-aft sail) so as to drape the sail equally on both sides over its boom.

flake ⁴ American  

[fleyk] / fleɪk /

verb (used without object)

Slang.

flaked, flaking

1. to back out of a plan, promise, engagement, agreement, etc.; fail to follow through on something (usually followed byout ).

   We had a 3 o’clock appointment, but he flaked on me an hour before.

2. to fall asleep; take a nap (usually followed byout ).

   She drank way too much and flaked out on my couch.

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flake ¹ British  

/ fleɪk /

verb

1. nautical another word for fake 1

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flake ² British  

/ fleɪk /

noun

1. a small thin piece or layer chipped off or detached from an object or substance; scale

2. a small piece or particle

   a flake of snow

3. a thin layer or stratum

4. archaeol

   1. a fragment removed by chipping or hammering from a larger stone used as a tool or weapon See also blade

   2. ( as modifier )

      flake tool

5. slang an eccentric, crazy, or unreliable person

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verb

1. to peel or cause to peel off in flakes; chip

2. to cover or become covered with or as with flakes

3. (tr) to form into flakes

flake ³ British  

/ fleɪk /

noun

1. (in Australia) the commercial name for the meat of the gummy shark

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flake ⁴ British  

/ fleɪk /

noun

1. a rack or platform for drying fish or other produce

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flake Scientific  

/ flāk /

1. A relatively thin, sharp-edged stone fragment removed from a core or from another flake by striking or prying, serving as a tool or blade itself or as a blank for making other tools.

2. See more at flake tool

3. A small, symmetrical, six-sided crystal of snow. Flakes can be large or small and wet or dry, depending on weather conditions. They are white in color because of their large number of reflecting surfaces.

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Other Word Forms

• flaker
  noun
• flakeless
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of flake¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; (noun) Middle English; akin to Old English flac- in flacox “flying (said of arrows),” Old Norse flakka “to rove, wander,” Middle Dutch vlacken “to flutter”; flake ¹ def. 4 by back formation from flaky, in sense “eccentric, odd”; (verb) late Middle English: “to fall in flakes,” derivative of the noun

Origin of flake²

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English flake, fleke, from Old Norse flaki, fleki “bridge, hurdle”

Origin of flake³

First recorded in 1620–30; apparently variant of fake ²

Origin of flake⁴

First recorded in 1935–40; perhaps expressive variant of flag ³; compare British dialect flack “to hang loosely, flap”

Explanation

A flake is a tiny piece of something. A flake could be a tasty morsel like a croissant flake, or a not so tasty morsel — like a dandruff flake. Ewww. In some places, you can see flakes of mica, a shiny glimmering mineral, lining the banks of a pond or paths through the woods. There are also croissant flakes, dandruff flakes, and of course snow flakes, individual snow crystals. When something flakes, it comes off in tiny flecks: "The paint had started to flake off the kitchen wall." If someone calls you a flake, they basically mean you're a weirdo.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

flake flaked flaking

Think whipped ricotta and blue cheese on crisp oil-toasted sourdough, topped with muddled olives, garlic, lemon and orange zest, fresh basil, olive brine, and a little red pepper flake.

From Salon ● Jul. 7, 2026

Each berry came out as a single large, flat flake that crisped when baked.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 4, 2026

Due to tiny differences in atmospheric conditions, each flake will create a unique pattern.

From BBC ● Dec. 24, 2024

All three of these modes are the most common ways in which conventional composites can internally flake and crumble.

From Science Daily ● Apr. 16, 2024

Then they pounded the hot metal with mallets, making the corrosion flake off the outside.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann

It also works across the board: flaked salmon with lemon and herbs, crab with celery and a lot of black pepper.

From Salon ● Apr. 28, 2026

Tender flaked blue crab and summer squash add sweetness and depth.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2025

Figuring out how you feel about flaking — whether you’re thinking about flaking or if you’re the person being flaked on — is hardly trivial.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 19, 2025

Granite boulders were charred and flaked from the inferno.

From Seattle Times ● Oct. 25, 2023

I taught him everything he knows, then he up and flaked out on me, talking about college and turning his back on his homies.

From "How It Went Down" by Kekla Magoon

Inside, the wallpaper is flaking, carpets are frayed and doors are broken.

From BBC ● May 20, 2026

Qubein, the newly appointed president, took a tour with his two college-age daughters and saw rust flaking off an old shower head.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 21, 2025

Figuring out how you feel about flaking — whether you’re thinking about flaking or if you’re the person being flaked on — is hardly trivial.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 19, 2025

If you have itching, flaking, rashes in the scalp, Krueger says that may be a sign you may need to wash more frequently.

From National Geographic ● Aug. 22, 2023

The walls were lined with bookshelves containing badly preserved volumes with the bindings crumbling and flaking, or distorted with damp.

From "The Subtle Knife" by Philip Pullman

Related Words

• exfoliate
• sliver