flare

[ flair ]

/ flɛər /

verb (used without object), flared, flar·ing.

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.

verb (used with object), flared, flar·ing.

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.

noun

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.

Nearby words

flapper, flappers, flapping tremor, flappy, flaps, flare, flare path, flare star, flare up, flare, solar, flare-up

Origin of flare

1540–50; original meaning: spread out, said of hair, a ship's sides, etc.; compare Old English flǣre either of the spreading sides at the end of the nose

SYNONYMS FOR flare

1 flame.

2 erupt, explode, flash, blaze, flame.

14 flash.

Related forms

out·flare, verb (used with object), out·flared, out·flar·ing.un·flared, adjective

Can be confused

flair flare

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for flares

“I have an unfortunate temper that flares up not too often, thank God,” Baquet says.
Dean Baquet, the NYT’s Executive Editor, on Jill Abramson, Race, Surviving Cancer—and TMZ Envy|Lloyd Grove|September 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
And then the flares light up the sky and the building begins to shake from the deadly thunder of Protective Edge.
Israel’s Campaign to Send Gaza Back to the Stone Age|Jesse Rosenfeld|July 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
When he finally arrives, however, his flares go unseen, his shouting unheard.
Why We Are Under the Spell of Survival Movies|Andrew Romano|October 21, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Abramoff is a man with a temper, and it flares at remembrance of past grievances.
David’s Book Club: ‘Capitol Punishment’|David Frum|March 23, 2012|DAILY BEAST

He also tries out flourishes and flares, which may at times work.
For Presidential Hopefuls, the Handwriting Says It All|Sheila Kurtz|January 11, 2012|DAILY BEAST
We were just starting to produce these flares when the war ended.
America's Munitions 1917-1918|Benedict Crowell
By the light of flares the great marauding machines of destruction are seen to hover apparently stationary.
Eighteen Months in the War Zone|Kate John Finzi
A hundred yards from the defences bonfires, to be lit by flares ignited by cords leading into the fort, were arranged.
Life in an Indian Outpost|Gordon Casserly
Flares were blossoming along the mainland, dropped by Yank fliers.
A Yankee Flier in Italy|Rutherford G. Montgomery
There were flares and trip wires round the lines, making, even on the darkest night, a surprise attack an impossibility.
Australia in Arms|Phillip F.E. Schuler

British Dictionary definitions for flares (1 of 2)

flares

/ (flɛəz) /

pl n

informal trousers with legs that widen below the knee

British Dictionary definitions for flares (2 of 2)

flare

/ (flɛə) /

verb

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

noun

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

Derived Forms

flared, adjective

Word Origin for flare

C16 (to spread out): of unknown origin

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

Medicine definitions for flares

flare

[ flâr ]

n.

An area of redness on the skin surrounding the primary site of infection or irritation.

flare

verb (used without object), flared, flar·ing.

verb (used with object), flared, flar·ing.

noun

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of flare

SYNONYMS FOR flare

Related forms

Can be confused

Examples from the Web for flares

British Dictionary definitions for flares (1 of 2)

flares

pl n

British Dictionary definitions for flares (2 of 2)

flare

verb

noun

Derived Forms

Word Origin for flare

Medicine definitions for flares

flare

n.