1
as in flapped
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 whipped
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 flailed
Kickboxing robots flailed wildly before falling over, and some sprinters crashed into rivals.
—
Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 19 Aug. 2025
On Sunday, Merrill flailed at two sliders in the dirt from Tyler Glasnow before looking at a third down the middle for strike three to strand a runner in the first inning.
—Jeff Sanders, San Diego Union-Tribune, 17 Aug. 2025
Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 19 Aug. 2025
On Sunday, Merrill flailed at two sliders in the dirt from Tyler Glasnow before looking at a third down the middle for strike three to strand a runner in the first inning.
—Jeff Sanders, San Diego Union-Tribune, 17 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for flailed
Verb
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But Chelsea — and Garnacho — responded again, the Argentina international reducing the arrears again after some Kepa had flapped at a cross.—
Simon Johnson,
New York Times,
14 Jan. 2026
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A little way down the bank, a hoatzin flapped awkwardly in dense foliage.—
Stanley Stewart,
Travel + Leisure,
10 Jan. 2026
Verb
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In an unlit room, the children are whipped and verbally chastized.—
Blake Simons,
IndieWire,
26 Jan. 2026
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Mountains of snow accumulated in drifts, whipped by winds of 50 mph or more.—
Kori Rumore,
Chicago Tribune,
26 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The clergy made a full lap around the field to make sure all the angles were covered, including the end where Loop's very makeable kick fluttered wide.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
6 Jan. 2026
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Almost 35 years later, the fight that started before that single envelope fluttered into his cell is not over.—
Faith Karimi,
CNN Money,
27 Dec. 2025
Verb
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Diaz’s attorney, James Crawford, argued that after the victim was slashed to death Andrademembreno let Diaz into the apartment complex, so the killing had already happened.—
City News Service,
Oc Register,
25 Jan. 2026
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Ahead of the launch of the Pixel 10a in February, Google has slashed the price of the Pixel 9a.—
Ewan Spence,
Forbes.com,
25 Jan. 2026
Verb
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But Johnson, who won a pair of Super Bowl championships with the Cowboys, lashed out at Spygate being the reason for Belichick not being selected.—
Pete Grathoff,
Kansas City Star,
28 Jan. 2026
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This is far from the first time the White House has lashed out at the cohosts of The View.—
Joey Nolfi,
Entertainment Weekly,
21 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The sixth-tier side doubled their advantage shortly after the hour mark as a deflected effort fell into the path of Buckley-Ricketts, who adjusted his body and flicked past goalkeeper Walter Benitez.—
Ali Rampling,
New York Times,
10 Jan. 2026
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The suspect poured gasoline on the girls as well as both officers, flicked a lighter and set the room ablaze.—
Angie DiMichele,
Sun Sentinel,
8 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The Patriots leaned on Los Angeles offensively and thrashed them on defense, circling Justin Herbert in the first half before swarming him for four sacks in the second.—
Andrew Callahan,
Boston Herald,
13 Jan. 2026
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The Giants followed that up by getting thrashed by the Eagles in Philadelphia this past Sunday.—
Matthew Schmidt,
MSNBC Newsweek,
27 Oct. 2025
Verb
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For perhaps the direction WWE is going with this match, backstage, Zayn slapped Drew McIntyre in the face.—
Rob Wolkenbrod,
Forbes.com,
24 Jan. 2026
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Trump had previously slapped a 10 percent tariff on Denmark and its European allies over the issue of Greenland, rattling much of Europe.—
Ellen Mitchell,
The Hill,
22 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Flailed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/flailed. Accessed 31 Jan. 2026.
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