flogged; flogging
1
a
: to beat with or as if with a rod or whip
The sailors were flogged for attempting a mutiny.
b
: to criticize harshly
He was flogged in the press for failing to take action.
2
: to force or urge into action : drive
3
a
chiefly British
: to sell (something, such as stolen goods) illegally
flogged their employers' petrol to ordinary motorists—
Economist
Economist
b
: sell sense 7
traveled by horse, flogging encyclopedias—Robert Darnton
Robert Darntonflogging wares at the local discount outlet—Ronald Henkoff
Ronald Henkoff
c
: to promote aggressively : plug
flying around the world flogging your movies—Peter Bogdanovich
Peter Bogdanovich4
British
: steal sense 1
flogger
noun
Examples of flog in a Sentence
The sailors were flogged for attempting a mutiny.
a graphic depiction of a sailor being flogged by the captain for disobeying orders
Recent Examples on the Web
Younger fans have lived through an era when, season by season, one by one, the most valuable player to come out of the academy had to be flogged to stop the club from being financially shipwrecked.
—Daniel Taylor, New York Times, 28 July 2025
This car cries out to be puttered around in, not flogged.
—ArsTechnica, 9 July 2025
More than 250 authors and vendors flogged books, records, comics, posters, and just about anything folks with penchant for print might purchase.
—M.l. Elrick, Freep.com, 21 July 2025
Judas, one of the apostles, betrays Jesus and that same night, Jesus is arrested and flogged.
—Tribune News Reports, Hartford Courant, 13 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for flog
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Daniel Taylor, New York Times, 28 July 2025
This car cries out to be puttered around in, not flogged.
—ArsTechnica, 9 July 2025
More than 250 authors and vendors flogged books, records, comics, posters, and just about anything folks with penchant for print might purchase.
—M.l. Elrick, Freep.com, 21 July 2025
Judas, one of the apostles, betrays Jesus and that same night, Jesus is arrested and flogged.
—Tribune News Reports, Hartford Courant, 13 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for flog
Cite this Entry
“Flog.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/flog. Accessed 24 Aug. 2025.
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