1
as in flutters
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 whips
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 flails
Burgess Everett, semafor.com, 16 Dec. 2025
The 16-year-old flails her arms, thrashes and kicks — sometimes for hours.
—Calmatters, Oc Register, 5 Dec. 2025
Verb
Premiums are poised to rise next year as the party flails on whether to extend enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies.
—Burgess Everett, semafor.com, 16 Dec. 2025
The 16-year-old flails her arms, thrashes and kicks — sometimes for hours.
—Calmatters, Oc Register, 5 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for flails
Verb
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Cuba's President Miguel Diaz-Canel (center) flutters a Venezuelan and Cuban national flags in support of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro in Havana.—
Kiki Intarasuwan,
CBS News,
3 Jan. 2026
Verb
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When a dog repeatedly wags and whips its tail against hard surfaces, the tip can split open, bruise or break.—
Miriam Fauzia,
Dallas Morning News,
21 Jan. 2026
-
Benbrook whips Diamond Hill-Jarvis Benbrook stayed on pace for a playoff berth in District 8-4A as the Lady Bobcats thumped Fort Worth Diamond Hill-Jarvis 55-7.—
Darren Lauber,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
21 Jan. 2026
Noun
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There’s Xi Jinping mogging Bibi Netanyahu while deafeningly aggro phonk bludgeons away; hype montages paint Marx as history’s greatest theorist and pair Zohran Mamdani quotes with Playboi Carti Die Lit cuts.—
Kieran Press-Reynolds,
Pitchfork,
24 Oct. 2025
Verb
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To clean your garbage disposal, Lane suggests starting by cleaning the rubber flaps by using dish soap and a brush or an old toothbrush to scrub the rubber flaps that line the disposal.—
Melissa Locker,
Southern Living,
4 Feb. 2026
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New features like active aero (flaps that open on the front and rear wings) help forge a much closer relationship between the engine and the chassis around it.—
Luke Smith,
New York Times,
30 Jan. 2026
Verb
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This information is conveyed by a hilariously avant-garde Poulter, playing the store’s manager, who dyes his hair to match each monochromatic scheme and hides his nefariousness behind a company policy that requires techno music to be played at maximum volume at all times.—
Jada Yuan,
Vulture,
13 Mar. 2026
-
Hitting Tab hides most interface elements, however.—
Michael Muchmore,
PC Magazine,
13 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Repeating this cycle helps replace older canes with new, stronger growth.—
Karen Brewer Grossman,
Southern Living,
10 Mar. 2026
-
Since the goal is to remove most of the old stems, prune back thick remaining stems to new canes that develop lower on the stem over the next couple of years.—
Tim Johnson,
Chicago Tribune,
7 Mar. 2026
Verb
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In addition to this, utilizing these existing tunnels and shafts significantly slashes construction costs and accelerates deployment timelines.—
Aman Tripathi,
Interesting Engineering,
4 Mar. 2026
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Congress slashes taxes, writes stimulus checks, and fattens unemployment-insurance payouts.—
Annie Lowrey,
The Atlantic,
18 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Edris steals a glance at a dozen or two golden batons rising at eye level.—
Sarah Blaskovich,
Dallas Morning News,
9 Mar. 2026
-
Police used batons, tear gas, and live fire to disperse the crowd.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
6 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Flails.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/flails. Accessed 15 Mar. 2026.
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