flowing
Americanadjective
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moving in or as in a stream.
flowing water.
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proceeding smoothly or easily; facile.
flowing language.
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long, smooth, graceful, and without sudden interruption or change of direction.
flowing lines; flowing gestures.
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hanging loosely at full length.
flowing hair.
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abounding; having in excess.
a land flowing with milk and honey.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of flowing
before 950; Middle English flowynge, Old English flōwende. See flow, -ing 2
Explanation
Anything flowing moves like liquid, such as the flowing water of a river or someone’s long, flowing hair. Even a conversation can be flowing if people have a lot to say to each other. The adjective flowing is useful for describing things that drape gracefully, like Rapunzel's flowing hair or Cinderella's flowing gown. The sleek and streamlined movements of a ballet dancer might also be called flowing, and so can particularly graceful writing: "The poet's flowing lines beautifully evoked a summer afternoon." Flowing comes from flow, from a root meaning "to stream, melt, or become liquid."
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.
With De Kooning’s paintings, there is an evolutionary throughline, where the bravura of the 1970s mellows into more contemplative, flowing compositions in the ’80s.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2026
Unlike the current flowing through ordinary electrical conductors, a supercurrent moves without resistance.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 5, 2026
After carefully twisting cables together and testing them with a multimeter, a small bulb flickered on, then another, signalling that the current was flowing.
From Barron's ● Nov. 5, 2026
He was airlifted to hospital where he underwent four surgeries, but despite several transfusions, oxygen was not flowing properly to the leg.
From BBC ● Nov. 3, 2026
Its arms reached out for me, smoke flowing from beneath its skin.
From "The City Beautiful" by Aden Polydoros
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
