flake
1a small, flat, thin piece, especially one that has been or become detached from a larger piece or mass: flakes of old paint.
any small piece or mass: a flake of snow.
a stratum or layer.
Slang. an eccentric person; screwball: My sister's new boyfriend is a real flake—I can't imagine why she goes out with him.
Slang. cocaine.
a usually broad, often irregular piece of stone struck from a larger core and sometimes retouched to form a flake tool.
to peel off or separate in flakes.
to fall in flakes, as snow.
to remove in flakes.
to break flakes or chips from; break into flakes: to flake fish for a casserole.
to cover with or as if with flakes.
to form into flakes.
Origin of flake
1Other words from flake
- flakeless, adjective
- flaker, noun
Other definitions for flake (2 of 4)
a frame, as for drying fish.
Origin of flake
2Other definitions for flake (3 of 4)
to lower (a fore-and-aft sail) so as to drape the sail equally on both sides over its boom.
Origin of flake
3Other definitions for flake (4 of 4)
to back out of a plan, promise, engagement, agreement, etc.; fail to follow through on something (usually followed by out): We had a 3 o’clock appointment, but he flaked on me an hour before.
to fall asleep; take a nap (usually followed by out): She drank way too much and flaked out on my couch.
Origin of flake
4Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use flake in a sentence
Pull the tape away, and it may still have some thin flakes of graphite attached.
Graphene gets real: Meet the entrepreneurs bringing the wonder substance to market | David Meyer | December 13, 2020 | FortunePeople will soon walk all over the melted witch goo like it isn’t there, and after a while the only trace of it will be filthy witch gunk on the bottom of our shoes, which will eventually flake off.
Gene Weingarten: Some wisdom from Nostradumbus | Gene Weingarten | November 12, 2020 | Washington PostRoasted under a drizzle of oil spiced with red pepper flakes and fennel, it’s especially comforting right out of the oven with crusty bread.
Thanksgiving appetizer recipes and easy cocktails to start the feast off right | Daniela Galarza, Becky Krystal | November 11, 2020 | Washington PostTransfer the Brussels sprouts to a medium bowl and add the sugar, olive oil, lemon juice and zest, salt, pepper and crushed red pepper flakes, if using.
This whole herb-roasted chicken with Hasselback potatoes is a holiday-ready sheet-pan dinner | Ann Maloney | November 10, 2020 | Washington PostAdd the garlic and pepper flakes and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes.
Homemade, seasoned breadcrumbs add crunch and flavor to pastas, vegetables and more | Jesse Szewczyk | October 30, 2020 | Washington Post
“They flaked out on the policy in 2009 and the administration starved their friends in Congress,” the person said.
I see a white-haired librarian silent in an oatmeal cardigan and flaked forehead just outside the doorway.
America's Public Library Crisis: Who’s Reading the Books? | Jon Reiner | May 23, 2012 | THE DAILY BEASTGalt leaned his body against the wall and rested the rifle on the paint-flaked window sill.
The white crests of the waves which galloped alongside flaked the darkness with ominous signalings.
Blow The Man Down | Holman DayFour, five or six eggs are laid; these are of a pale greenish-blue hue, speckled or flaked with sepia markings.
A Bird Calendar for Northern India | Douglas DewarAll examples are retouched along the edges; many are very finely pressure flaked.
Handbook of Alabama Archaeology: Part I Point Types | James W. CambronOne or all blade edges may be secondarily flaked by the removal of fine, shallow flakes or rather crude deep flakes.
Handbook of Alabama Archaeology: Part I Point Types | James W. CambronThe shallow notches that form the hafting area are steeply flaked.
Handbook of Alabama Archaeology: Part I Point Types | James W. Cambron
British Dictionary definitions for flake (1 of 4)
/ (fleɪk) /
a small thin piece or layer chipped off or detached from an object or substance; scale
a small piece or particle: a flake of snow
a thin layer or stratum
archaeol
a fragment removed by chipping or hammering from a larger stone used as a tool or weapon: See also blade
(as modifier): flake tool
slang, mainly US an eccentric, crazy, or unreliable person
to peel or cause to peel off in flakes; chip
to cover or become covered with or as with flakes
(tr) to form into flakes
Origin of flake
1Derived forms of flake
- flaker, noun
British Dictionary definitions for flake (2 of 4)
/ (fleɪk) /
a rack or platform for drying fish or other produce
Origin of flake
2British Dictionary definitions for flake (3 of 4)
/ (fleɪk) /
nautical another word for fake 1
British Dictionary definitions for flake (4 of 4)
/ (fleɪk) /
(in Australia) the commercial name for the meat of the gummy shark
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for flake
[ flāk ]
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. See more at flake tool.
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.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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