flipper

[flip-er]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR flipper ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a broad, flat limb, as of a seal or whale, especially adapted for swimming.

Also called fin. one of a pair of paddlelike devices, usually of rubber, worn on the feet as an aid in scuba diving and swimming.

Theater. a narrow flat hinged or attached at right angles to a larger flat.

Slang. the hand.

someone or something that flips.

Origin of flipper

First recorded in 1815–25; flip¹ + -er¹

flip

[flip]

adjective, flip·per, flip·pest. Informal.

flippant; pert.

Origin of flip

First recorded in 1840–50; adj. use of flip¹

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

Related Words for flipper

cheeky, brazen, derisive, profane, rude, mocking, flippant, tongue-in-cheek, impish, devilish, buoyant, carefree, rollicking, jolly, playful, jovial, perky, sprightly, breezy, impulsive

Examples from the Web for flipper

Contemporary Examples of flipper

“The flipper is a living object, and you never play the same game on it,” says Colin.
Paris Cafes Lose Their Pinball Machines, as Numbers Dwindle
Solène Cressant
July 13, 2013
Steel balls caromed around the table as the player massaged, tickled, pressed, and slammed the flipper buttons.
Paris Cafes Lose Their Pinball Machines, as Numbers Dwindle
Solène Cressant
July 13, 2013
Looks like the only thing ready to come with him in this "real" moment is a fish named Flipper.
9 Crazy On-the-Job Movie Meltdowns
The Daily Beast Video
August 10, 2010

Historical Examples of flipper

I'm not sure that a seal's flipper might not be acceptable by to-morrow morning.
Left on Labrador
Charles Asbury Stephens
I shook his flipper weakly and tried the dodge of pretending to recognise him.
A Yeoman's Letters
P. T. Ross
It gave him a chance of driving the harpoon under the flipper of the male.
Fast in the Ice
R.M. Ballantyne
It was a nice, fat, luscious, flipper seal and dead as a door-nail.
Grenfell: Knight-Errant of the North
Fullerton Waldo
Papik's second lance strikes through a flipper into the lungs.
Grenfell: Knight-Errant of the North
Fullerton Waldo

British Dictionary definitions for flipper

flipper

noun

the flat broad limb of seals, whales, penguins, and other aquatic animals, specialized for swimming

Also called: fin (often plural) either of a pair of rubber paddle-like devices worn on the feet as an aid in swimming, esp underwater

cricket a ball bowled with backspin imparted by the action of the bowler's wrist

flip

verb flips, flipping or flipped

to throw (something light or small) carelessly or briskly; tosshe flipped me an envelope

to throw or flick (an object such as a coin) so that it turns or spins in the air

to propel by a sudden movement of the finger; flickto flip a crumb across the room

(foll by through) to read or look at (a book, newspaper, etc) quickly, idly, or incompletely

(intr) (of small objects) to move or bounce jerkily

(intr) to make a snapping movement or noise with the finger and thumb

(intr) slang to fly into a rage or an emotional outburst (also in the phrases flip one's lid, flip one's top, flip out)

(intr) slang to become ecstatic or very excitedhe flipped over the jazz group

noun

a snap or tap, usually with the fingers

a rapid jerk

a somersault, esp one performed in the air, as in a dive, rather than from a standing position

same as nog 1 (def. 1)

adjective

informal impertinent, flippant, or pert

Word Origin for flip

C16: probably of imitative origin; see fillip

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

Word Origin and History for flipper

"limb used to swim with," 1822, agent noun from flip (v.). Sense of "rubber fin for underwater swimming" is from 1945. Slang meaning "the hand" dates from 1836. Related: Flippers.

flip

1590s (1520s in flip-flop), imitative or else a contraction of fillip (q.v.), which also is held to be imitative. Sense of "get excited" is first recorded 1950; flip one's lid "lose one's head, go wild" is from 1950. For flip (adj.) "glib," see flippant. Meaning "to flip a coin" (to decide something) is by 1879. As a noun by 1690s. Related: Flipped. Flipping (adj.) as euphemism for fucking is British slang first recorded 1911 in D.H. Lawrence. Flip side (of a gramophone record) is by 1949.

flip

sailors' hot drink usually containing beer, brandy and sugar, 1690s, from flip (v.); so called from notion of it being "whipped up" or beaten.

flipper in Science

flipper

[flĭp′ər]

A wide, flat limb adapted for swimming, found on aquatic animals such as whales, seals, and sea turtles. Flippers evolved from legs.