flirt

verb \ ˈflərt \

|Updated on: 9 Aug 2018

Tip: Synonym Guide

Examples: flirt in a Sentence

Definition of flirt

flirted; flirting; flirts

intransitive verb

1 : to move erratically : flit

butterflies flirting among the flowers

2 a : to behave amorously without serious intent

He flirts with every attractive woman he meets.

b : to show superficial or casual interest or liking

flirted with the idea

; also : experiment

a novelist flirting with poetry

3 : to come close to reaching or experiencing something —used with with

flirting with disaster

transitive verb

1 : flick

They flirt water at each other's faces.

2 : to move in a jerky manner

a bird flirting its tail

—

flirtation

play \ˌflər-ˈtā-shən\ noun

—

flirter

noun

—

flirty

play \ˈflər-tē\ adjective

See flirt defined for English-language learners

See flirt defined for kids

Examples of flirt in a Sentence

They were flirting all night.
the servers at that restaurant flirt with all the customers

Recent Examples of flirt from the Web

But a handful of officials have flirted with the idea while bolstering their pan-European credentials.

— tom fairless, WSJ, "Jockeying Begins to Take European Central Bank’s Reins From Draghi," 7 July 2018
Buffon had flirted with the idea of retirement, but has seemingly been persuaded by Paris Saint-Germain's hierarchy to play on in the aim of fulfilling his dream of winning the Champions League.

— SI.com, "PSG Signs Goalkeeping Legend Gianluigi Buffon to One-Year Deal," 6 July 2018
Of late, the music industry has flirted with the idea of thrift, but Drake is a showman with a distaste for restraint: Scorpion, his fifth solo effort, embraces immoderation, a two-disc, 25-track affair that runs an obnoxious 90 minutes in full.

— jason parham, WIRED, "With Scorpion, #DrakeSZN Is Back—as Overwrought as Ever," 2 July 2018
By Jason Boatright At times during this stretch, Junis has flirted with precision, striking out at least five batters in three of those outings.

— maria torres, kansascity, "A career night from Francisco Lindor dooms Royals, Junis in loss to Indians," 2 July 2018
Others have flirted with rivals Facebook Inc. and Amazon.com Inc.’s Twitch.

— lucas shaw, Bloomberg.com, "YouTube Is Offering a Talent Option to Sell Subscriptions," 22 June 2018
Comcast had flirted with the idea of buying these same properties last year, but potential anti-trust issues stymied its effort.

— laura bradley, HWD, "What Disney and Comcast’s Battle Over Fox Means for Film and TV Fans," 14 June 2018
In the past, the long-running historical stabbing simulator has flirted with player choice systems, most notably in last year’s Assassin’s Creed: Origins.

— chaim gartenberg, The Verge, "Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey is even more of a traditional RPG than last year’s Origins," 11 June 2018
Prior to the posts, Davidson and Grande had flirted with each other online by sprinkling cute emojis and comments on each other's social media posts.

— refinery29.com, "Ariana Grande & Pete Davidson Are Now Dressing Up As A Harry Potter Couple," 30 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'flirt.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of flirt

origin unknown

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1580

in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

See Words from the same year

flirt Synonyms

Synonyms

dance, dart, flick, flicker, flit, flitter, flutter, zip;

Near Antonyms

float, hang, hover;

scamper, scud, scurry, scuttle, skip, skitter;

meander, ramble, roam, wander;

Synonym Discussion of flirt

trifle, toy, dally, flirt, coquet mean to deal with or act toward without serious purpose. trifle may imply playfulness, unconcern, indulgent contempt.

- to trifle with a lover's feelings

toy implies acting without full attention or serious exertion of one's powers.

- a political novice toying with great issues

dally suggests indulging in thoughts or plans merely as an amusement.

- dallying with the idea of building a boat someday

flirt implies an interest or attention that soon passes to another object.

- flirted with one fashionable ism after another

coquet implies attracting interest or admiration without serious intention.

- companies that coquet with environmentalism solely for public relations

flirt

noun

Definition of flirt

1 : an act or instance of flirting

2 : a person who flirts

See flirt defined for English-language learners

Examples of flirt in a Sentence

he's just a harmless flirt, so don't take him seriously

Recent Examples of flirt from the Web

Personals, while ostensibly functioning as a way to meet future partners, also works as a support network where people show up simply to encourage people's posts and trade flirts.

— angela watercutter, WIRED, "Could a Text-Based Dating App Change Selfie-Swiping Culture?," 10 July 2018
In one scene, Diego courts Luciana (Lola Dueñas), a flirt in a preposterous wig worthy of Marie Antoinette.

— manohla dargis, New York Times, "Review: In ‘Zama,’ Trying to Say Goodbye (Cruel) New World," 12 Apr. 2018
Priyanka Chopra and Nick Jonas' Instagram flirt-fest continues.

— erica gonzales, Harper's BAZAAR, "Priyanka Chopra Can't Stop Leaving Flirty Comments on Nick Jonas' Instagram and We Are Here For It," 7 June 2018
From beloved internet celebs (like Chrissy Tiegen, coming in at 19) and bears (in both 20th and 8th place), there are plenty of options for getting your flirt on.

— marshall bright, refinery29.com, "The 20 GIFs Most Likely To Get You A Response On Tinder," 15 Mar. 2018
Since 2009, New York City’s annual bus ridership has plunged by almost 11 percent, even as the city’s population booms and its overcrowded subway flirts with collapse.

— aarian marshall, WIRED, "NYC Is Redesigning Its Ancient, Ponderous, and Unpopular Bus System," 24 Apr. 2018
Flown flirts with trying to pull off too many ideas, but the ride-the-lightning guitar talents of Corey Standifer and crackerjack drumming of Jacob Kozlowski are undeniable.

— david lindquist, Indianapolis Star, "Record Store Day acts set off musical fireworks at Indianapolis shops," 22 Apr. 2018
Torres is a flirt, and something of a sucker for a good accent, and flirts with Giles throughout the second episode.

— michaela bechler, Vogue, "Netflix Announces Another Season of Nailed It!—Here’s Why You Should Binge-Watch the First," 26 Mar. 2018
Or even just a flirty-flirt that has one sour note in it.

— katie kilkenny, Billboard, "Barry Diller Weighs in on #MeToo Movement: 'All Men Are Guilty'," 24 Mar. 2018

Origin and Etymology of flirt

see ¹flirt

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: circa 1590

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

FLIRT Defined for English Language Learners

flirt

verb

Definition of flirt for English Language Learners

: to behave in a way that shows a sexual attraction for someone but is not meant to be taken seriously
: to think about something or become involved in something in a way that is usually not very serious
: to come close to reaching or experiencing something