flop 1 of 2

noun

Definition of flopnext
as in disaster
something that has failed the movie is such a flop that theaters showing it are the loneliest places in town

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

flop

2 of 2

verb

ˈfläp How to pronounce flop (audio)
1
as in to plop
to throw or set down clumsily or casually they lazily flopped themselves onto the couch to watch the game flopped the bag of groceries onto the counter

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2
as in to collapse
to be unsuccessful the attempt to run the ball into the end zone flopped, and our team lost by five points

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to flap
to move or cause to move with a striking motion a fish flopping around on the dock

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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 flop
Noun
Completed in 1919, the hospital was a flop, as only 33 veterans -- of 30,000 contacted -- expressed interest in care. — Miami Herald Archives, Miami Herald, 7 Oct. 2026 The infamous stage musical adaptation of Stephen King’s novel about a telekinetic high schooler was a massive Broadway flop in 1988 but has been redeemed by steady community and college theater productions over the decades since. — Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 3 Oct. 2026
Verb
Miguel Vargas homered late for the White Sox, who flopped in their second straight bid to clinch a postseason series at home for the first time since the 1906 World Series against the Chicago Cubs. — Sabrina Franza, CBS News, 8 Oct. 2026 All of this lends itself to a mid-single-digit opening at 2,200 theaters for Social Reckoning, perhaps around $8M (where Tom Cruise’s $160M Digger flopped). — Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 7 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for flop
Recent Examples of Synonyms for flop
  1. disaster
  2. plop
  3. collapse
  4. flap
  5. failure
  6. fold
  7. flutter
  8. bust
Noun
  • Faizi said ambulances and disaster management personnel arrived from a nearby facility within five minutes of being alerted.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 16 Oct. 2026
  • For example, largely because of the environmental disaster that is Weikuang Dam, the country doesn’t permit the development or operation of stand-alone monazite mines—that is, mines where nothing is mined except monazite ore.
    — Glenn Zorpette, IEEE Spectrum, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of disaster
Verb
  • One time, a very famous chef served my dining companion a gorgeous ten-piece dessert while plopping a giant wedge of cheese on my plate.
    — Bon Appétit, Bon Appetit Magazine, 14 Oct. 2026
  • So by the time Max was 3 years old, he was already plopped into a kid kart inside the speedway’s shipping and receiving warehouse while being pulled around with a bungee cord tied to the front bumper.
    — Tyler Carmona, Miami Herald, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of plop
Verb
  • Flames engulfed the 19th-century City Hall in the city of Limoges, in central France, causing its roof to collapse and nearly destroying the building.
    — SYLVIE CORBET, Arkansas Online, 19 Oct. 2026
  • The students who stepped forward when their teacher collapsed playing basketball in Michigan illustrate what becomes possible when CPR skills are taught before they are needed.
    — Meng Yang, Time, 18 Oct. 2026
Definition of collapse
Verb
  • Birds chirp in the tree branches above, and a large yellow butterfly alights on a leaf before flapping away into the sloping sunshine.
    — Sophie Neiman, Christian Science Monitor, 5 Oct. 2026
  • That means the bird species flapping around in backyards today are effectively the only surviving dinosaurs.
    — Katie Hunt, CNN Money, 15 Sep. 2026
Definition of flap
Noun
  • The question confronting Israel and its international partners is not simply whether money should flow into Gaza, but also who controls it—and whether the next arrangement will avoid the failures of the last.
    — Eric Cortellessa, Time, 18 Oct. 2026
  • Special-teams breakdowns — including a 70-yard kickoff return and two field-goal failures — played a big role in the Rams’ 37-34 overtime loss to Buffalo.
    — Gary Klein, Los Angeles Times, 17 Oct. 2026
Definition of failure
Verb
  • Adrien Michel, winner of the 2025 le19M Métiers d’Art Prize, introduced a capsule inspired by Marcel Breuer’s Cesca B34 chair, anchored by a shirt that folds out of a leather case made with Studio MTX.
    — Tina Isaac-Goizé, Vogue, 17 Oct. 2026
  • Robots learn from experiments A separate Google project tested whether agents could improve DNA aptamers, short molecules that fold into shapes capable of attaching to specific proteins.
    — Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of fold
Verb
  • Yellow caution tape fluttered in the wind as water poured into a room strewn with wooden debris, an upturned refrigerator and a television.
    — Fedor Zarkhin, Los Angeles Times, 11 Oct. 2026
  • Out in the garden, living butterflies flutter among orchids and flowering shrubs, some landing in butterfly traps hanging from the trees.
    — Sophie Neiman, Christian Science Monitor, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of flutter
Noun
  • For Dan Greenhaus, strategist at Solus Alternative Asset Management, CoreWeave isn’t a canary in the coal mine that signals the AI bust is imminent.
    — Jason Ma, Fortune, 17 Oct. 2026
  • In Marseille City Hall, a bust of Marianne, the national symbol of France, was knocked to the ground and an anarchist symbol was spray-painted on a wall, according to BFMTV.
    — Elina Baudier Kim, CNN Money, 17 Oct. 2026
Definition of bust

Browse Nearby Words

floozy
flop
flop (down)
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Flop.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/flop. Accessed 19 Oct. 2026.

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