flies 1 of 2

present tense third-person singular of fly
1
as in hovers
to move through the air with or as if with outstretched wings the Wright brothers realized mankind's age-old wish to fly

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
3
4
5
6
as in passes
to withstand scrutiny and gain acceptance or approval the familiar "Because I said so!" is a reason that won't fly with most teenagers

Synonyms & Similar Words

flies

2 of 2

noun

plural of fly

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of flies
Verb
The next big test will be the demonstration flight of a Long March 10A rocket, which flies with a single core booster, and China’s new Mengzhou Moon ship to low-Earth orbit in early 2027. — Stephen Clark, ArsTechnica, 6 Nov. 2026 But in a town of heavyweight food and beverage brands from Chick-fil-A to Coca-Cola, Chicken Salad Chick still flies a bit under the radar, said its chief executive. — Amy Wenk, AJC.com, 3 Nov. 2026 The Great Pumpkin flies around the world leaving presents in pumpkin patches for his staunchest believers. — Colin Fleming, Chicago Tribune, 30 Oct. 2026 Live flies landing on food such as tuna, cheese and chicken were cited at three of seven South Florida restaurants temporarily shut down last week. — Kari Barnett, Sun Sentinel, 29 Oct. 2026 The plane flies non-stop from the capital directly to Puerto Williams in four hours flat—the only direct commercial flight of its kind. — Liam Hess, Vogue, 29 Oct. 2026 Others pointed out how the plan flies directly in the face of existing efforts to reduce the amount of radiation back on Earth. — Victor Tangermann, Futurism, 28 Oct. 2026 The device then flies back and strikes model Isabella Rojas in the face. — Joey Nolfi, Entertainment Weekly, 28 Oct. 2026 Germany's Lufthansa flies to Israel from Europe and British Airways is scheduled to re-start flights this week. — Jason Gewirtz, CNBC, 26 Oct. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for flies
Verb
  • Using photogammetry, a technique which renders 2D surfaces into 3D models, and game engines, Montoya directs a virtual drone that hovers over the ruins of cities and its strange, frozen residents.
    — Shanti Escalante-De Mattei, ARTnews.com, 26 Oct. 2026
  • As Indy hovers above us, for instance, his legs and hips subtly shift.
    — Todd Martens, Los Angeles Times, 23 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • As the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics explains, energy confinement time describes how quickly thermal energy escapes from the plasma, rather than how long an experiment runs.
    — Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 31 Oct. 2026
  • The host enters the water, where the worm escapes from its body and begins the next stage of its life cycle.
    — Tara Deans, The Conversation, 30 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • Inside Botánica Santo Tomas in Wilton Manors, store owner Héctor Giovanni Pizarro Santana sweeps the floor as his tiny Chihuahua, Bella, scurries behind him.
    — Delia Sauer, Miami Herald, 15 Aug. 2026
  • Meanwhile, in King’s Landing, Alicent scurries the great halls, desperate to shore up support for her plan to hand Rhaenyra the Red Keep.
    — Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 29 June 2026
Verb
  • Jaros and Rauh calculate that the state will lose money so long as 24 percent of the tax base flees, a condition that’s already been met.
    — Ramesh Ponnuru, Washington Post, 27 Oct. 2026
  • Moss flees across the Mexican border, hiding the money along the bank of the Rio Grande before winding up in a Mexican hospital.
    — Frannie Comstock, Encyclopedia Britannica, 23 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • Midway through the conversation, Šeregi disappears, to pop up five minutes later, this time on a speedboat with the coastline receding behind him.
    — Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 5 Nov. 2026
  • But the people who have spent three seasons assigning that responsibility to Clark should explain why their standard apparently disappears when applying it would require them to make demands of Reese.
    — Dan Zaksheske OutKick, FOXNews.com, 3 Nov. 2026
Verb
  • Superconducting coil passes tests The magnet cold test facility was developed to evaluate ITER’s superconducting magnets and their supporting infrastructure before installation in the tokamak.
    — Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 4 Nov. 2026
  • If the bond passes, Walsh said money in the district’s general fund can be used for teacher raises.
    — Elizabeth Campbell, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 4 Nov. 2026
Noun
  • The modular laptop display system is not an entirely new idea, and there are some existing products on the market that offer detachable portable screens.
    — Maryna Holovnova, New Atlas, 7 Nov. 2026
  • These floor-to-ceiling screens allow for the most air movement and light.
    — Tim Carter, Hartford Courant, 7 Nov. 2026
Verb
  • This news soon wings its way to Irv Ravitz (Tibor Feldman), the magazine’s publisher, who hires her to be Runway’s features editor.
    — Damon Wise, Deadline, 29 Apr. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Flies.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/flies. Accessed 9 Nov. 2026.

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