flit
Americanverb (used without object)
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to move lightly and swiftly; fly, dart, or skim along.
bees flitting from flower to flower.
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to flutter, as a bird.
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to pass quickly, as time.
hours flitting by.
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Chiefly Scot. and North England.
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to depart or die.
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to change one's residence.
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verb (used with object)
noun
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a light, swift movement; flutter.
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Scot. and North England. a change of residence; instance of moving to a new address.
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Slang: Extremely Disparaging and Offensive. a contemptuous term used to refer to a gay man.
verb
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to move along rapidly and lightly; skim or dart
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to fly rapidly and lightly; flutter
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to pass quickly; fleet
a memory flitted into his mind
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dialect to move house
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informal to depart hurriedly and stealthily in order to avoid obligations
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an informal word for elope
noun
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the act or an instance of flitting
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slang a male homosexual
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informal a hurried and stealthy departure in order to avoid obligations (esp in the phrase do a flit )
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See moonlight flit
Related Words
See fly 2.
Other Word Forms
- flitter noun
- flittingly adverb
Etymology
Origin of flit
First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English flitten, from Old Norse flytja “to carry, convey,” Swedish flytta; fleet 2
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
My mind flitted back to a conversation I had with my physical therapist about modern love: Dating in L.A. has become monotonous.
From Los Angeles Times
The pixies squeaked and flitted back and forth between me and the wheel.
From Literature
Conversations are built on disagreement; distractable brains flit from one thought to a barely related other.
From Los Angeles Times
Cartoon snowflakes flit across the screen, and both boys groan.
From Literature
And all the time the yellow-white mist floated about them, and sometimes shapes flitted just within their sight, and voices whispered.
From Literature
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
