flare
- to burn with an unsteady, swaying flame, as a torch or candle in the wind.
- to blaze with a sudden burst of flame (often followed by up): The fire flared up as the paper caught.
- to start up or burst out in sudden, fierce intensity or activity (often followed by up): His stomach problems have flared up.
- to become suddenly enraged; express sudden, fierce anger or passion (usually followed by up or out): I’m not a person who flares easily. She sometimes flares out at the kids.
- to shine or glow.
- to spread gradually outward, as the end of a trumpet, the bottom of a wide skirt, or the sides of a ship.
- to cause (a candle, torch, etc.) to burn with a swaying flame.
- to display conspicuously or ostentatiously.
- to signal by flares of fire or light.
- to cause (something) to spread gradually outward in form.
- Metallurgy. to heat (a high-zinc brass) to such a high temperature that the zinc vapors begin to burn.
- to discharge and burn (excess gas) at a well or refinery.
- a flaring or swaying flame or light, as of torches in the wind.
- a sudden blaze or burst of flame.
- a bright blaze of fire or light used as a signal, a means of illumination or guidance, etc.
- a device or substance used to produce such a blaze of fire or light.
- a sudden burst, as of zeal or of anger.
- a gradual spread outward in form; outward curvature: the flare of a skirt.
- something that spreads out.
- Optics. light, often unwanted or extraneous, reaching the image plane of an optical instrument, as a camera, resulting from reflections, scattering by lenses, and the like.
- Photography. a fogged appearance given to an image by reflection within a camera lens or within the camera itself.
- Also called solar flare. Astronomy. a sudden and brief brightening of the solar atmosphere in the vicinity of a sunspot that results from an explosive release of particles and radiation.
- Football. a short pass thrown to a back who is running toward a sideline and is not beyond the line of scrimmage.
- Television. a dark area on a CRT picture tube caused by variations in light intensity.
Origin of flare
Synonyms for flare
Related Words for flared
flicker, burn, flash, explode, blaze, seethe, glow, widen, shoot, dazzle, glare, burst, fume, shimmer, dart, rant, waver, flutter, broaden, growExamples from the Web for flared
Contemporary Examples of flared
The (very wealthy) de la Renta women wore bold colors, flared sleeves, full-bodied skirts and trousers.
A highlight was the lone feline gender-bender: a brown male Bengal wearing a flared party skirt.
Kitty CATure Fashion Show, An Amazing Dog and Cat Fashion Show, Happened In New York This WeekendLori-Lee Emshey
September 30, 2013
Resistance to “The Star-Spangled Banner” also flared among blacks, pacifists, and advocates of temperance.
Star-Spangled Confederates: How Southern Sympathizers Decided Our National AnthemJefferson Morley
July 4, 2013
This family conflict has flared on and off for the last two decades.
Days after the controversy first flared, feelings about the ad were still raw in the evangelical community.
Historical Examples of flared
When he heard the drums he flared up like a spark in the tinder.
The Trail BookMary Austin
Katy set her hands on her hips, flared her elbows, and lifted her chin.
Her Father's DaughterGene Stratton-Porter
The temper of the exasperated Mr. Saunders flared up in a final outburst.
Cap'n EriJoseph Crosby Lincoln
He flared up at that, and demanded of me that I should read him my riddle.
The Tavern KnightRafael Sabatini
“You thought he waited here, or planned to––to meet me,” she flared.
The Treasure TrailMarah Ellis Ryan
flare
- to burn or cause to burn with an unsteady or sudden bright flame
- to spread or cause to spread outwards from a narrow to a wider shape
- (tr) to make a conspicuous display of
- to increase the temperature of (a molten metal or alloy) until a gaseous constituent of the melt burns with a characteristic flame or (of a molten metal or alloy) to show such a flame
- (tr sometimes foll by off) (in the oil industry) to burn off (unwanted gas) at an oil well
- an unsteady flame
- a sudden burst of flame
- a blaze of light or fire used to illuminate, identify, alert, signal distress, etc
- the device producing such a blaze
- a spreading shape or anything with a spreading shapea skirt with a flare
- a sudden outburst, as of emotion
- optics
- the unwanted light reaching the image region of an optical device by reflections inside the instrument, etc
- the fogged area formed on a negative by such reflectionsSee also solar flare
- astronomy short for solar flare
- aeronautics the final transition phase of an aircraft landing, from the steady descent path to touchdown
- an open flame used to burn off unwanted gas at an oil well
Word Origin for flare
Word Origin and History for flared
flare
"bright, unsteady light," 1814, from flare (v.), which led to the sense of "signal fire" (1883). Flares "flared trousers" is from 1964.
flare
mid-16c., originally "spread out" (hair), of unknown origin, perhaps from Dutch vlederen. Related: Flared; flaring. The notion of "spreading out in display" is behind the notion of "spreading gradually outward" (1640s). Flare-up "a sudden burst" is from 1837.
flare
(flâr)- An area of redness on the skin surrounding the primary site of infection or irritation.