fleck

1 of 2

verb

ˈflek 

flecked; flecking; flecks

transitive verb

1

: streak, spot

whitecaps flecked the blue sea

2

: to color as if by sprinkling with flecks

his wit is flecked with sarcasm

—James Atlas

fleck

2 of 2

noun

1

: spot, mark

a brown tweed with flecks of yellow

2

: flake, particle

flecks of snow drifted down

Synonyms

Verb

• sprinkle
• dot
• stain
• pepper
• speck

Noun

• speck
• dot
• blotch
• patch

Examples of fleck in a Sentence

Verb

She flecked the canvas with blue paint.

to achieve the desired effect, fleck the canvas with paint simply by flicking the brush close to the surface

Noun

a brown cloth with flecks of yellow

The police found flecks of blood on his clothes.

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Inside the residence, police found a trail of blood that led from the front door to the bathroom, where the dog was found curled up in a ball on the floor, which was flecked with blood. —John Lynch, Arkansas Online, 17 June 2025

Emond’s script deftly contrives a third act that’s hopeful but still flecked with genuine despair. —Leslie Felperin, HollywoodReporter, 20 May 2025

Noun

The gloss comes in six sheer shades, ranging from clear to a purple hue, and four of them include shimmery flecks that’ll catch the light to make your lips look even juicier. —Angela Trakoshis, Allure, 4 June 2025

Miniature crystals dot the brown enamel to look like flecks of salt. —Jamie Allison Sanders, People.com, 9 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

Verb

back-formation from flecked spotted, from Middle English; akin to Old High German flec spot, Old Norse flekkr

First Known Use

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

1598, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for fleck

• beck
• breck
• check
• cheque
• czech
• deck
• keck
• mech
• neck
• peck
• reck
• sec

Kids Definition

fleck

1 of 2 verb

ˈflek 

: streak entry 2 sense 1, spot

fleck

2 of 2 noun

1

: spot entry 1 sense 2a, mark

2

: flake entry 1, particle