flapper
Americannoun
noun
-
a person or thing that flaps
-
(in the 1920s) a young woman, esp one flaunting her unconventional dress and behaviour
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of flapper
Explanation
A flapper was a certain type of woman in the United States in the 1920's. Flappers were known for their unconventional style and behavior. In the United States in the 1920s, a certain kind of woman emerged: the flapper. Flappers had their own hairstyles and ways of dressing, especially bobbed hair and short skirts. They liked to listen to jazz and generally embraced freedom from social conventions. None of this was considered "ladylike" at the time: it was new and shocking. Flappers were a sign of changing times and more freedom for women to express themselves. There's no doubt the flappers had a lot of style.
Vocabulary lists containing flapper
Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
American History - Middle School
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
American History - High School
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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:
Fans dressed in approximations of her floaty ballgowns and 1920s flapper dresses, hollering lyrics like mantras.
From BBC ● May 2, 2026
President Donald Trump hosted a “Great Gatsby” themed party for Halloween, complete with tuxedos, flapper dresses, jazz covers and cocktails that evoked the opulence of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s Roaring Twenties.
From Salon ● Nov. 2, 2025
Sam Gallagher and Yash Thakkar, both English majors, dub her Jordan—after the flapper and semipro golfer in “The Great Gatsby”—when they learn that she gave up a golf scholarship her freshman year.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2025
Underneath, dresses of scalloped sequins and draped fringe recall flapper looks with contemporary discipline.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 24, 2024
Grandma Smith was a West Texas flapper who loved dancing and cussing and horses.
From "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls
To replicate the columnar formations of birds, in which they line up one directly behind the other, the researchers created mechanized flappers that act like birds' wings.
From Science Daily ● Apr. 25, 2024
In what ways were flappers a reaction to World War I?
From Textbooks ● Dec. 14, 2022
I think flappers and waifs could feel the impending doom.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 19, 2022
The evening started with cocktails and moved to a tent on the museum’s back lawn; many patrons were dressed as flappers to fit the Roaring Twenties theme.
From Washington Post ● Nov. 2, 2021
It was light and floaty, with thin shoulder straps, the type of outfit I imagined flappers with boyish figures wore for a night out at a speakeasy or a dance hall.
From "The Red Car to Hollywood" by Jennie Liu
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.
