flit

verb

flitted; flitting

intransitive verb

1
: to pass quickly or abruptly from one place or condition to another
2
archaic : alter, shift
3
: to move in an erratic fluttering manner
flit noun

Examples of flit in a Sentence

butterflies flitting around the garden The hummingbird flitted from flower to flower. She was always flitting around the kitchen.
Recent Examples on the Web Elsewhere, discreet and attentive staff tend to guests’ every whim, while guests flit between the Guerlain Spa, The Plaza Hotel Fitness Center, and The Plaza Boutique—a homage to its Fifth Avenue location. Robb Report Studio, Robb Report, 12 Feb. 2024 Hisaishi’s music here is like a big beautiful bird puffing out its chest as much as any other character, apt for a film that must balance the usually strict rules of a Miyazaki universe with the intentionally flitting nature of a story about herons, canaries, and pelicans. Vulture, 24 Jan. 2024 The work explores chasing your destiny, flitting from day job to day job and looking for love with humor. Keyaira Boone, Essence, 5 Feb. 2024 On stage, the band is like a Renaissance painting come to life as Morris flits about in a corseted dress while delivering a powerhouse vocal performance and Roberts shreds on the guitar in sky-high heels. Ellise Shafer, Variety, 2 Feb. 2024 Like Voynich, many modern scholars suspect that the manuscript’s text is a ciphered form of a familiar language, with their theories of the tome’s latent linguistics flitting from Latin to Nahuatl, the language of the Aztecs and Toltecs of Mexico. Sam Walters, Discover Magazine, 31 Jan. 2024 The only thing that came ashore, besides the gulls that flit about on East Brother and its smaller sibling, the undeveloped West Brother Island, was Foregger the next morning, when the weather cleared. Sacramento Bee, 30 Jan. 2024 There are different casino tabs to flit between (Red & Classic) and a separate poker room. Sponsored Content, The Mercury News, 10 Jan. 2024 People flitted between card games and watching Zev Anderman, a 19-year-old employee, perform magic tricks. Anusha Bayya, New York Times, 27 Dec. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'flit.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English flitten, of Scandinavian origin; akin to Old Norse flytjask to move, Old English flēotan to float

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of flit was in the 13th century

Dictionary Entries Near flit

Cite this Entry

“Flit.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/flit. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

flit

verb
flitted; flitting
: to move or progress in a quick irregular manner
flit noun

More from Merriam-Webster on flit

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