flail

1 of 2

noun

ˈflāl 

: a hand threshing implement consisting of a wooden handle at the end of which a stouter and shorter stick is so hung as to swing freely

flail

2 of 2

verb

flailed; flailing; flails

transitive verb

1

a

: to strike with or as if with a flail

The bird's wings flailed the water.

b

: to move, swing, or beat as if wielding a flail

flailing their arms to drive away the insects

2

: to thresh (grain) with a flail

intransitive verb

: to move, swing, or beat like a flail

arms flailing in the water

Synonyms of flail

Verb

• flutter
• flap

Examples of flail in a Sentence

Verb

They were flailing their arms to drive away the insects.

The wounded animal lay on the ground, flailing helplessly.

He was wildly flailing about on the dance floor.

The bird's wings flailed the water.

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Luis Arraez took a pitch down the middle, then flailed at a changeup almost in the dirt. — Matt Gelb, New York Times, 16 Sep. 2026

So, why now, halfway through the first take of the shoot, was Axl flailing his arm like a windmill with his jacket hurling around through space like a lasso? — Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 15 Sep. 2026

Daniels confessed that the Hendrick teams underestimated their gap to the Toyotas, which won five of the first six races, then flailed by trying to do too much in their setups at early races, including Darlington and Phoenix. — ABC News, 14 Sep. 2026

Much of the time, you’re left to put up with untrained screen actors not knowing where to stand or look, or who don’t know not to block the camera’s view with flailing hands. — Siddhant Adlakha, IndieWire, 9 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Verb

Middle English fleil, flail, partly from Old English *flegel (whence Old English fligel), from Late Latin flagellum flail, from Latin, whip & partly from Anglo-French flael, from Late Latin flagellum — more at flagellate

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Rhymes for flail

• ail
• ale
• bail
• baile
• dail
• fail
• frail
• gael
• gail
• grail
• hail
• jail

Kids Definition

flail

1 of 2 noun

ˈflā(ə)l 

: a tool for threshing grain by hand

flail

2 of 2 verb

1

: to strike with or as if with a flail

2

: to move or wave about as if swinging a flail

flailed their arms

Medical Definition

flail

adjective

ˈflā(ə)l 

: exhibiting abnormal mobility and loss of response to normal controls

—used of body parts damaged by paralysis, injury, or surgery

flail joint