flirt

verb \ ˈflərt \

|Updated on: 14 Jun 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

Fans of Ariana Grande and Pete Davidson’s romance are in luck, because the new couple are taking their social media flirting up a notch.

— maria pasquini, PEOPLE.com, "Ariana Grande and 'Happiest Boy' Pete Davidson Amp Up Their Social Media Flirting," 9 June 2018
Todd Gilliland, making his Texas debut, flirted with winning the race hours after celebrating his high school graduation at TMS.

— drew davison, star-telegram, "Johnny Sauter wins truck race No. 5 at Texas Motor Speedway," 8 June 2018
The tight pink and ivory buds of several fragrant viburnum flirted with passersby who knew the scent of just one of the open flowers could stop them in their tracks.

— chicago tribune, chicagotribune.com, "Algren Award runner-up: "Here Is Where the Taxi Driver Set His Wife on Fire" by GKS Waller," 2 June 2018
The Permian Basin is in the middle of a boom as oil prices flirt with $70 a barrel.

— rye druzin, San Antonio Express-News, "You’ll never guess what the most prosperous city in the U.S. is," 1 June 2018
The video, which premieres today exclusively with Refinery29, is just as simple: Reinhart dances around the canals in Venice Beach, flirting with the camera.

— rebecca farley, refinery29.com, "Haley Reinhart's "Last Kiss Goodbye" Has All Of Your Favorite Things," 31 May 2018
The bill first gained prominence in 2007 when George W. Bush was president and oil prices were flirting with $100 a barrel and made a comeback several years later under Barack Obama.

— Houston Chronicle, "Under pressure from Trump, Saudis put brakes on oil price rally," 25 May 2018
Janine Eveler, head of Cobb elections, said at noon Tuesday that preliminary numbers show the county is flirting with about a 17 percent turnout.

— ben brasch, ajc, "Early numbers in Cobb show pattern of low turnout, rain isn’t helping," 22 May 2018
Court documents say Jesse Dakins attacked 34-year-old Joseph Trevizo after Trevizo had flirted with Dakins' girlfriend, 34-year-old Tiffany Warren.

— robert gundran, azcentral, "Police: Mesa man stabbed another man to death for flirting with girlfriend," 18 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

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
Or even just a flirty-flirt that has one sour note in it.

— katie kilkenny, The Hollywood Reporter, "Barry Diller Weighs in on #MeToo Movement: "All Men Are Guilty"," 24 Mar. 2018
Still, some of the White House officials acknowledged that Trump did once flirt with removing Mueller.

— mary clare jalonick, Washington Post, "GOP leaders have yet to move to protect special counsel," 20 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