flirt
Americanverb (used without object)
-
flirts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
flirted,
past participle, past
-
flirting
present participle
verb (used with object)
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flirts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
flirted,
past participle, past
-
flirting
present participle
-
to give a sudden or brisk motion to; wave smartly, as a fan.
-
to throw or propel with a toss or jerk; fling suddenly.
verb
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(intr) to behave or act amorously without emotional commitment; toy or play with another's affections; dally
-
to deal playfully or carelessly (with something dangerous or serious); trifle
the motorcyclist flirted with death
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to think casually (about); toy (with)
to flirt with the idea of leaving
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(intr) to move jerkily; dart; flit
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(tr) to subject to a sudden swift motion; flick or toss
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
flirtsimple
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flirtssimple
-
have flirtedperfect
-
has flirtedperfect
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am flirtingprogressive
-
are flirtingprogressive
-
is flirtingprogressive
-
have been flirtingperfect progressive
-
has been flirtingperfect progressive
Past
-
flirtedsimple
-
had flirtedperfect
-
was flirtingprogressive
-
were flirtingprogressive
-
had been flirtingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of flirt
First recorded in 1540–50; of expressive origin; compare similar initial cluster in flap, flick 1, flip 1 and final elements of squirt, spurt
Explanation
If you're interested in someone romantically, you might flirt with them, which means to chat them up or tease them in a playful way. Flirting is an indirect and fun way to let your crush know you're interested, like a seductive line or a few coy words. Or if there's a girl you've had your eye on, you might make a point of walking by her desk and saying hello every morning. But even if you don't have a love interest, you can still flirt. Driving carelessly is flirting with disaster: it's almost like you're toying with the idea of getting into an accident.
Vocabulary lists containing flirt
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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:
Once everyone is locked in, COs get to lounge around inside the bubble: eat, drink coffee, flirt with each other, complain, maybe nap until they have to perform the 10:30 p.m. count.
From Slate ● Aug. 11, 2026
SpaceX shares slipped more than 2.5% to $132.15 in trading before rebounding to flirt with $135 again.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026
“I learned to flirt there, I learned to smoke there, I learned to trash-talk there,” she says.
From Salon ● Jul. 3, 2026
"Those years when you're sort of experimenting with how you show up in person with another person, how you flirt, how you think about intimacy, that was interrupted for many people," she says.
From BBC ● Jun. 4, 2026
I didn’t understand why he didn’t flirt with me, but now I’m glad.
From "The Diary of a Young Girl" by Anne Frank
That is despite warnings that it has morphed from a Eurosceptic party, founded in 2013, into one that flirts with, or attracts, extremist support.
From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026
America flirts with it and folds, every single cycle.
From Slate ● Jun. 6, 2026
A great example is when Clark initially flirts with Carol.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 10, 2026
Ms. Truschke’s book is quirky and flirts with wokeness.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 5, 2025
He hates it when she flirts with others.
From "Enrique's Journey" by Sonia Nazario
Only one-third of stocks in the S&P 500 index were trading above their 50-day moving average as of Friday, even as the benchmark flirted with an all-time high.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 12, 2026
As I moved from darkened room to darkened room, ridiculed in one, flirted with in another, a thread of finding one’s own personal paradise in a hellscape began to emerge.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2026
It is in stark contrast to last term, when the Paisley side flirted with relegation, coming through a play-off to retain their top-flight status.
From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2026
He had flirted with the idea of buying a franchise for years, but a local opportunity caught his and his girlfriend’s eye: a 30-year-old screen-printing and embroidery shop that had been battered by the pandemic.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 5, 2026
I haven’t flirted, Mother, truly, but remembered what you said to me, and have done my very best.
From "Little Women" by Louisa May Alcott
He plays with the limits and in the race this manifests itself as flirting with the white lines on the edge of the track.
From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2026
After weeks of heavy selling the yield on 10-year government bonds is now flirting with the psychological threshold of five percent, a level not seen since 2002.
From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026
Papa Pope’s harsh words were meant to prepare his daughter for the risks inherent to flirting with power.
From Salon ● Aug. 31, 2026
With culture shifts happening in restaurant kitchens, perhaps it was prudent to show Bourdain’s character merely flirting with the dark side.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026
One guy in his late twenties stood at a bakery counter, flirting with a young woman who was buying coffee.
From "The Son of Neptune" by Rick Riordan
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
