flit

[ flit ]

/ flɪt /

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See synonyms for: flit / flitted / flitting on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object), flit·ted, flit·ting.

to move lightly and swiftly; fly, dart, or skim along: bees flitting from flower to flower.

to flutter, as a bird.

to pass quickly, as time: hours flitting by.

Chiefly Scot. and North England.

to depart or die.
to change one's residence.

verb (used with object), flit·ted, flit·ting.

Chiefly Scot. to remove; transfer; oust or dispossess.

noun

a light, swift movement; flutter.

Scot. and North England. a change of residence; instance of moving to a new address.

Slang: Extremely Disparaging and Offensive. a contemptuous term used to refer to a gay man.

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of flit

First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English flitten, from Old Norse flytja “to carry, convey,” Swedish flytta; see fleet²

synonym study for flit

1. See fly².

OTHER WORDS FROM flit

flit·ting·ly, adverb

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use flit in a sentence

Second, he was to be seen flitting in and out of London Airport wearing beads and baggy white trousers.
What It Was Like to Watch the Beatles Become the Beatles—Nik Cohn Remembers|Nik Cohn|February 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He was like some comedic humming bird, flitting from Megan Mullally to Eric McCormack to Debra Messing.
The Failure of ‘Sean Saves the World’ Is Epically Disappointing|Kevin Fallon|January 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
She first appears onscreen in the late 1950s, flitting around the breakfast table in a negligee.
Oprah Winfrey’s Fashion Evolution in ‘Lee Daniels’ The Butler’|Isabel Wilkinson|August 15, 2013|DAILY BEAST
He spent his 20s flitting from one beautiful woman to the next, often to the benefit of his own career.
Whitney Houston’s Final Romance: Was Ray J Using Her for Reality TV?|Ramin Setoodeh|February 23, 2012|DAILY BEAST

Greenblatt will turn a young 68 in a few months, and the last thing on his ebullient, flitting mind is death.
The Book That Changed the World|Jimmy So|October 7, 2011|DAILY BEAST
The cause of Haggard's mysterious detention in Rome, and of their own sudden flitting, became at once clear to her.
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume I (of 3)|Charles James Wills
Silently the turnkey passes the cell, like a flitting mystery casting its shadow athwart a troubled soul.
Prison Memoirs of an Anarchist|Alexander Berkman
As I was standing at a window with Hugh in my arms, I saw the two lights come flitting down the valley together.
A Fortune Hunter; Or, The Old Stone Corral|John Dunloe Carteret
The lesser one remained flitting about the house, or to and fro between here and Antelope Butte.
A Fortune Hunter; Or, The Old Stone Corral|John Dunloe Carteret
Scudding clouds were seen flitting across the sky, from which there descended now and then misty showers of rain.
Rollo in Holland|Jacob Abbott

British Dictionary definitions for flit

flit

/ (flɪt) /

verb flits, flitting or flitted (intr)

to move along rapidly and lightly; skim or dart

to fly rapidly and lightly; flutter

to pass quickly; fleeta memory flitted into his mind

Scot and Northern English dialect to move house

British informal to depart hurriedly and stealthily in order to avoid obligations

an informal word for elope

noun

the act or an instance of flitting

slang, mainly US a male homosexual

British informal a hurried and stealthy departure in order to avoid obligations (esp in the phrase do a flit)

See moonlight flit

Derived forms of flit

flitter, noun

Word Origin for flit

C12: from Old Norse flytja to carry

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

flit

Origin of flit

synonym study for flit

OTHER WORDS FROM flit

Words related to flit

How to use flit in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for flit

Derived forms of flit

Word Origin for flit