flop
1 Americanverb (used without object)
-
to fall or plump down suddenly, especially with noise; drop or turn with a sudden bump or thud (sometimes followed bydown ).
The puppy flopped down on the couch.
-
to change suddenly, as from one side or party to another (often followed byover ).
-
to be a complete failure; fail.
The play flopped dismally.
-
Informal. to sleep or be lodged.
to flop at a friend's house.
-
to swing loosely; bounce; flap.
His long hair flops in his eyes when he runs.
verb (used with object)
-
to drop with a sudden bump or thud.
He flopped his books on a chair.
-
to dispose (oneself ) in a heavily negligent manner.
to flop oneself in a chair.
-
to invert (the negative of a photograph) so that the right and left sides are transposed.
noun
-
an act of flopping.
-
the sound of flopping; a thud.
-
a failure.
The new comedy was a flop.
-
Informal. a place to sleep; temporary lodging.
The mission offered a flop and a free breakfast.
-
Basketball. an exaggerated or dramatic fall intended to persuade officials to penalize the opposing team for a foul.
His comically oversold flop didn’t fool the referees at all.
noun
-
Computers. flops.
-
Mathematics. a single mathematical operation involving floating-point numbers.
verb
-
(intr) to bend, fall, or collapse loosely or carelessly
his head flopped backwards
-
to fall, cause to fall, or move with a sudden noise
the books flopped onto the floor
-
informal (intr) to fail; be unsuccessful
the scheme flopped
-
(intr) to fall flat onto the surface of water, hitting it with the front of the body
-
slang to go to sleep
noun
-
the act of flopping
-
informal a complete failure
-
slang a place to sleep
-
athletics See Fosbury flop
-
poker the first three community cards dealt face-up in a round of any of several varieties of poker, including Texas hold 'em
Usage
What does flop mean? To flop is to plump down or fall suddenly, often making a noise, as in After the long hike, Sasha flopped on the grass to rest. To flop can also mean to drop something with a sudden bump, as in Dola flopped her books to the floor to make room on the desk. To flop also means to fail completely, as in The new play flopped because the actors didn’t know their lines and no one came after opening night. Flop can be used as a noun to refer to any of these actions, as well. Example: I flopped on the couch after a long day of work.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
flopsimple
-
flopssimple
-
have floppedperfect
-
has floppedperfect
-
am floppingprogressive
-
are floppingprogressive
-
is floppingprogressive
-
have been floppingperfect progressive
-
has been floppingperfect progressive
Past
-
floppedsimple
-
had floppedperfect
-
was floppingprogressive
-
were floppingprogressive
-
had been floppingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of flop
First recorded in 1595–1605; variant of flap; flop def. 11 was first recorded in 1890–95.
Explanation
To flop is to drop or hang heavily and loosely. If you're exhausted at the end of the day, you might flop into a chair as soon as you walk into your house. Your long hair might flop into your eyes, and if you catch a fish, you'll have to watch it flop around in your boat before it stops breathing. A tired child might begin to sob and flop onto the floor in frustration. You can also call a disaster a flop: "We worked so hard on that play, but it turned out to be a total flop." The earliest meaning of flop was "to flap."
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:
For someone who never held political office — a 1999 bid for San Francisco mayor was a notable flop — Reilly wielded considerable influence.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 26, 2026
In 1967, he met Mary Tyler Moore while serving as an assistant stage manager for a production of “Holly Golightly,” which turned out to be a flop.
From Salon ● Jun. 20, 2026
If those IPOs flop, it would have huge consequences throughout the stock market as investors re-evaluate the future of the AI trend.
From Barron's ● Jun. 11, 2026
Google is also having a second go at wearables, as that company recently said it would try again with "smart glasses" more than a decade after its notorious Google Glass flop.
From BBC ● Jun. 2, 2026
I flop back onto my bed, and my whole body’s buzzing.
From "What If It's Us" by Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera
Even a retreat that flops can draw employees closer while they commiserate over its lameness, adds Michael I. Norton, a Harvard Business School professor who has studied group rituals.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
The show, which premiered on Broadway in 1947, was Lerner and Loewe’s first hit after a string of flops and fizzles.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 20, 2026
Perhaps the next couple of months could be spent courting record labels and songwriters, instead of leaning on Thomas Stengaard, the Danish musician who co-wrote our last two flops.
From BBC ● May 17, 2026
The second his shift is over, he gracelessly flops over the boards and zones out so dramatically that fans like to joke that he’s haunted.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 3, 2026
My dad’s curly hair flops over one of his eyes.
From "Internment" by Samira Ahmed
It came, it saw, it occasionally flopped and writhed on the grass, but it truly conquered.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026
The congressional investigation flopped like a soccer player fishing to draw a red card, finally concluding in 1998.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026
And while their own startup had flopped, the entrepreneurs were more confident than ever in their operational skills.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 11, 2026
They flopped again, 3-0 against the Republic of Ireland, in the Nations League that followed.
From BBC ● Jun. 28, 2026
“Zion and Zarra, copy Donte. Feet at right angle. Back arm up, hand flopped over, relaxed. Sword arm straight.”
From "Black Brother, Black Brother" by Jewell Parker Rhodes
Add environmental, social and governance grievances to a long list of fantasy flopping isms—remember speciesism?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 12, 2026
Gee, thanks—not much different than popping up after flopping on the soccer pitch.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 12, 2026
Dick Fosbury flopping over the bar in the high jump.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 7, 2026
We thought flopping and foul-baiting made for unethical hoops, but those are but basketball misdemeanors; Adebayo’s big night was felonious.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 11, 2026
Goldfish flopping all around my feet, amidst the shards of broken glass.
From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt
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.
