1
as in to flutter
to move or cause to move with a striking motion
started to flail his arms wildly when he spied a bat in the house
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in to whip
to strike repeatedly with something long and thin or flexible
gruesome evidence that the prisoner had been flailed
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of flail
Kristian Winfield, New York Daily News, 19 Apr. 2026
Gorman flailed at a 96 mph full-count four-seamer.
—Matt Kawahara, Houston Chronicle, 19 Apr. 2026
After being placed in a government vehicle, Ferreira Borges allegedly kicked, flailed, and screamed obscenities at officers, officials said.
—Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 17 Apr. 2026
The force was enough to send Romero flailing to the turf, bringing out a yellow card.
—Kyle Kensing, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for flail
Verb
Officials assessed McCollum a technical foul for inadvertently kicking Brunson below the belt while flailing his leg on a fadeaway jump shot in the Knicks’ Game 1 victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday.
—Kristian Winfield, New York Daily News, 19 Apr. 2026
Gorman flailed at a 96 mph full-count four-seamer.
—Matt Kawahara, Houston Chronicle, 19 Apr. 2026
After being placed in a government vehicle, Ferreira Borges allegedly kicked, flailed, and screamed obscenities at officers, officials said.
—Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 17 Apr. 2026
The force was enough to send Romero flailing to the turf, bringing out a yellow card.
—Kyle Kensing, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for flail
Recent Examples of Synonyms for flail
Verb
-
Iran’s flag before the 1979 revolution — green, white and red with a lion and a rising sun — flutters from many overhangs.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
1 May 2026
-
At that moment, the sun began to shine brightly, the wind picked up and the curtain fluttered violently.—
Kamala Thiagarajan,
NPR,
26 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The Dark Knight Rises (2012) Those of us who love her were able to finally take a breather on this one when the film bros eventually shut up and were able to admit that Hathaway totally whips ass in this franchise closer.—
Chris Feil,
Vulture,
1 May 2026
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The younger Franqui, who was out on a more than $1 million bond, was also re-arrested at Los Angeles International Airport after allegedly pistol whipping a person in West Hartford.—
Staff Report,
Hartford Courant,
30 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Iran practices honest bludgeon work.—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
4 Apr. 2026
-
But Beshear hasn’t turned Trump-bashing into a 24/7 vocation, or a weight-lifting contest where the winner is the critic wielding the heaviest bludgeon.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
1 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Emery will argue his fine-margins approach, however blunt Villa presently appear in attack, could have been validated if Ollie Watkins’ close-range shot was not straight at Stefan Ortega or if Lucas Digne had not flapped his arms inside the box to give away a penalty.—
Jacob Tanswell,
New York Times,
1 May 2026
-
And that jockey was flapping and flapping about the top of his horse, lookin’ like a chicken—elbows jumping this way an’ that, but the horse was spent.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
30 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
To add order, cabinets hide toys, there’s a small desk for homework, and East London Cloth café curtains filter the light.—
Katherine Burns Olson,
Architectural Digest,
1 May 2026
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The Harrison County Health Department notes dark clothing resembles the shadows mosquitoes hide in.—
Ryan Brennan,
Miami Herald,
1 May 2026
Noun
-
Brown suffered cuts and a black eye in addition to leg injures that resulted in permanent scarring and requires him to walk with a cane, his lawyers say.—
Sheetal Banchariya,
New York Daily News,
28 Apr. 2026
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Dancer Jessica Rabanzo-Flores, dressed in a brown suit jacket and representing McCullers, approached the stage with a cane before joining company dancers who performed the gravity-defying balancing acts that reflect Malashock’s choreographic style.—
Marcia Luttrell,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
26 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Lufthansa, one of the biggest carriers in Europe, slashed 20,000 short-haul flights through October due in part to fuel costs.—
Spencer Kimball,
CNBC,
6 May 2026
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Earlier in the film, Kenobi slashes off the arm of a creature who was known then as Walrus Man and is known now as Ponda Baba.—
Mike Ryan,
IndieWire,
4 May 2026
Noun
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The three main mayoral candidates seem to have finally prioritized the problem, or at least understand its value as a cudgel against each other.—
Gary Baum,
HollywoodReporter,
17 Apr. 2026
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The ostensible fear is that of identity hardening into a cudgel, foreshortening a character’s emotional palette.—
Doreen St. Félix,
New Yorker,
14 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Flail.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/flail. Accessed 8 May. 2026.
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