flour
Americannoun
-
the finely ground meal of grain, especially the finer meal separated by bolting.
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the finely ground and bolted meal of wheat, as that used in baking.
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any finely ground meal resembling this, as of nuts or legumes: chickpea flour.
almond flour;
chickpea flour.
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a finely ground, powdery foodstuff, as of dehydrated potatoes, fish, or bananas.
-
a fine, soft powder.
flour of emery.
verb (used with object)
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flours,
present (3rd person singular)
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floured,
past participle, past
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flouring
present participle
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to grind (grain or the like) into flour.
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to sprinkle or dredge with flour.
Flour the chicken before frying.
verb (used without object)
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flours,
present (3rd person singular)
-
floured,
past participle, past
-
flouring
present participle
-
(of mercury) to refuse to amalgamate with another metal because of some impurity of the metal; lie on the surface of the metal in the form of minute globules.
-
to disintegrate into minute particles.
noun
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a powder, which may be either fine or coarse, prepared by sifting and grinding the meal of a grass, esp wheat
-
any finely powdered substance
verb
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(tr) to make (grain) into flour
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(tr) to dredge or sprinkle (food or cooking utensils) with flour
-
(of mercury) to break into fine particles on the surface of a metal rather than amalgamating, or to produce such an effect on (a metal). The effect is caused by impurities, esp sulphur
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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floursimple
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flourssimple
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have flouredperfect
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has flouredperfect
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am flouringprogressive
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are flouringprogressive
-
is flouringprogressive
-
have been flouringperfect progressive
-
has been flouringperfect progressive
Past
-
flouredsimple
-
had flouredperfect
-
was flouringprogressive
-
were flouringprogressive
-
had been flouringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of flour
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English flour, flur, flower, special use of flower (in the sense “finest part”); compare French fleur de farine “the flower, or finest part, of meal”
Explanation
Flour is a fine, powdery ingredient that's used to bake bread and cake and is made by grinding wheat or other grains. A traditional pound cake is made with a pound of flour. You'll need flour when you bake almost anything, and while flour is usually made from wheat, you can also buy rice flour, corn flour, and may other kinds. When you sprinkle flour on the counter before kneading bread dough, you flour it. Flour comes from its homophone, flower, from the sense of "the finest or loveliest part of the meal," just as a flower is the finest part of a plant.
Vocabulary lists containing flour
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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:
Mix the dry ingredients: Whisk together the flour, baking powder, cardamom and salt.
From Salon ● Aug. 16, 2026
The passengers’ extra clothing was wrapped in a mattress cover, and in the center of the group stood a few cans of beans and two sacks of flour — all their remaining possessions.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 9, 2026
New sensors and live machine data were integrated to create live digital versions of the dough, capturing minute variances in raw materials—like the particle size of the flour.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026
Last week, farmers and flour producers said they were adapting to the challenges of dealing with the earliest harvest for 50 years.
From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026
Turns out kids couldn’t resist eating dough, even if all it was flavored with was salt and flour.
From "Chronicles of a Lizard Nobody" by Patrick Ness
She’s tried to replicate the experience in Sarasota, by importing Italian pastas and flours and procuring French butter from specialty stores.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 8, 2026
They use a range of flours that are farmed using sustainable methods that prioritise soil health.
From BBC ● Dec. 18, 2025
They are made with a mix of nut and seed flours and coated in a cheddar-y coating that makes them a more satisfying alternative to Cheez-Its.
From Salon ● Jul. 30, 2025
He noted that artisanal bakeries in the state have long used unenriched flours without health inspectors going after them, as Arambula’s bill would do to tortilleros.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 22, 2024
Owing to the use of soft flours, the flavour should be agreeable, and the loaves ought to keep much longer than bread made by ferment and dough.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Slice 4 "Bradford, William" to "Brequigny, Louis" by Various
Roll the dough: On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough into roughly a 12-by-16-inch rectangle, about the thickness of dough for cinnamon rolls.
From Salon ● Aug. 16, 2026
Gently mix the two ingredients together, knead briefly and flatten out to about 1/2” thickness on a floured surface.
From Salon ● Mar. 14, 2025
When the batter has formed into a cohesive ball, turn it onto the floured work surface and knead the dough for two minutes.
From Washington Times ● Dec. 12, 2023
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead gently until it comes into one mass; you don’t want to overwork it.
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 27, 2023
She pounded out the dough with her floured palms, then sprinkled a mixture of dried herbs and spices on top.
From "Darius the Great Is Not Okay" by Adib Khorram
How you roll the dough depends on the final shape you want, but begin by generously flouring a countertop and rolling pin.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 15, 2022
Greasing and flouring the paper will ensure it releases without pulling off any of the cake crust.
From Washington Post ● Apr. 4, 2022
Place the dough between two large sheets of parchment paper and roll out into a 10-inch circle, flouring as needed.
From Washington Post ● Feb. 6, 2022
He clapped his hands again above his head, and a fine, light flouring flew into the air—sort of like chalk dust—and a haze shimmered about his face.
From "The Wednesday Wars" by Gary D. Schmidt
Princeton has one steam saw mill, two flouring mills, one feed mill, two elevators with a capacity of 60,000 bushels, and one brewery.
From Fifty Years In The Northwest With An Introduction And Appendix Containing Reminiscences, Incidents And Notes by William Henry Carman Folsom
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.
