flæʃ v., n., & adj. --v. 1 intr. & tr.
emit or
reflect or
cause to emit or reflect
light briefly, suddenly, or intermittently;
gleam or cause to gleam. 2 intr. break suddenly
into flame;
give out flame or sparks. 3 tr.
send or reflect like a
sudden flame or blaze (his eyes flashed fire). 4 intr. a
burst suddenly into
view or
perception (the
explanation flashed
upon me). b
move swiftly (the
train flashed
through the station). 5 tr. a send (news etc.) by
radio,
telegraph, etc. (flashed a
message to her). b signal to (a person) by shining
lights or headlights briefly. 6 tr. colloq.
show ostentatiously (flashed
her engagement ring). 7 intr. (of water) rush
along;
rise and flow. 8 intr. sl. indecently
expose oneself. --n. 1 a sudden
bright light or flame, e.g. of
lightning. 2 a
very brief time; an
instant (all
over in a flash). 3 a a brief, sudden burst of
feeling (a flash of hope). b a sudden
display (of wit,
understanding, etc.). 4 =
NEWSFLASH. 5 Photog. =
FLASHLIGHT 1. 6 a a rush of
water,
esp. down a
weir to
take a
boat over shallows. b a
contrivance for producing
this. 7
Brit.
Mil. a
coloured patch of
cloth on a
uniform etc. as a distinguishing
emblem. 8
vulgar display,
ostentation. 9 a bright patch of
colour. 10 Cinematog. the
momentary exposure of a
scene. 11
excess plastic or
metal oozing
from a mould
during moulding. --adj. colloq. 1 gaudy;
showy; vulgar (a flash car). 2
counterfeit (flash notes). 3
connected with thieves, the
underworld, etc. øflash-board a
board used for sending
more water from a mill-dam into a mill-race. flash
bulb Photog. a bulb for a flashlight. flash burn a burn caused by sudden
intense heat, esp. from a
nuclear explosion. flash card a card containing a
small amount of
information,
held up for pupils to see, as an
aid to
learning. flash-cube Photog. a set of
four flash bulbs arranged as a
cube and operated in
turn. flash-flood a sudden
local flood due to
heavy rain etc. flash-gun Photog. a
device used to
operate a
camera flashlight. flashing-point =
FLASHPOINT. flash in the pan a
promising start followed by
failure (from the priming of
old guns). flash-lamp a
portable flashing electric lamp. flash out (or up) show sudden
passion. flash over Electr.
make an electric
circuit by sparking
across a
gap. flash-over n. an
instance of this. [ME orig. with
ref. to the rushing of water:
cf. SPLASH]
