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Synonyms

let fly

Idioms  

  1. Discharge a missile or fire a weapon; also, attack verbally. For example, He let fly a rotten egg at the speaker, or They let fly some insults laced with four-letter words. The first usage dates from about a.d. 1000, the second from the late 1500s.

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.

The Dodgers scrapped his slider, mixed in a sweeper, and told him his arm was so good that he should stop trying to make perfect pitches and just let fly.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 3, 2026

A couple of questions later, after defending his crowd sizes, he let fly with this:

From Salon • Sep. 11, 2024

Man almost replicated that effort as he worked his way into the area and let fly again, but his strike hit team-mate George Puscas and the visitors cleared.

From BBC • Mar. 22, 2024

The teams traded unproductive possessions until Fiso found a crease above the left side of the three-point arc and let fly.

From Seattle Times • Mar. 2, 2024

At his command, then, “Ho!” they all let fly as one man.

From "The Odyssey" by Homer

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.