flit
Americanverb (used without object)
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to move lightly and swiftly; fly, dart, or skim along.
bees flitting from flower to flower.
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to flutter, as a bird.
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to pass quickly, as time.
hours flitting by.
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Chiefly Scot. and North England.
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to depart or die.
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to change one's residence.
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verb (used with object)
noun
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a light, swift movement; flutter.
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Scot. and North England. a change of residence; instance of moving to a new address.
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Slang: Extremely Disparaging and Offensive. a contemptuous term used to refer to a gay man.
verb
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to move along rapidly and lightly; skim or dart
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to fly rapidly and lightly; flutter
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to pass quickly; fleet
a memory flitted into his mind
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dialect to move house
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informal to depart hurriedly and stealthily in order to avoid obligations
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an informal word for elope
noun
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the act or an instance of flitting
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slang a male homosexual
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informal a hurried and stealthy departure in order to avoid obligations (esp in the phrase do a flit )
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See moonlight flit
Related Words
See fly 2.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of flit
First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English flitten, from Old Norse flytja “to carry, convey,” Swedish flytta; see fleet 2
Explanation
A flit is a quick movement. You might flit around a crowded party, greeting everyone briefly with some light-hearted chatter and moving on quickly. Whether it's used to describe something literal or figurative, flit refers to something fleeting and quick. Flit and fleet are both related to float. Something that floats keeps moving. A smile might flit across your face or a thought may flit into your mind. That means the smile or the thought is there for a second and then gone.
Vocabulary lists containing flit
Hot to Trot: Animal Ambulation
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Stargirl
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Matilda
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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.
Silverblatt spent his entire career at S&P, a rarity among restless Wall Street hustlers who often flit between companies to climb the corporate ladder.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 3, 2026
Today, bicycles and bright yellow three-wheeled "keke" taxis flit along paved streets or new highway flyovers direct traffic over packed roundabouts.
From Barron's • Nov. 12, 2025
Also, monarch butterflies flit among the tall stands of narrow leaf milkweed, the plant their caterpillars require to survive.
From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 26, 2025
At the end of our interview, he stands up, ready to leave, and for the first time, a flicker of concern, or perhaps irritation, seems to flit across his face.
From BBC • Oct. 28, 2024
He saw a wizened witch flit out of the frame of her picture and into the one next to it, which contained a wizard with a walrus mustache.
From "Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire" by J. K. Rowling
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
