flat-out
[ flat-out ]
/ ˈflætˈaʊt /
Save This Word!
adjective Informal.
moving or working at top speed or with maximum effort; all-out: a flat-out effort by all contestants.
downright; thoroughgoing: Many of the paintings were flat-out forgeries.
QUIZ
ALL IN FAVO(U)R OF THIS BRITISH VS. AMERICAN ENGLISH QUIZ
There's an ocean of difference between the way people speak English in the US vs. the UK. Are your language skills up to the task of telling the difference? Let's find out!
Question 1 of 7
True or false? British English and American English are only different when it comes to slang words.
Origin of flat-out
First recorded in 1925–30
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use flat-out in a sentence
Other Idioms and Phrases with flat-out
flat out
In a direct manner, bluntly. For example, He told the true story flat out. [Colloquial; mid-1900s]
At top speed, as in She was running flat out to catch the train. [Slang; c. 1930]
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.