flank 
or side of; border at the side or sides: as, the 
flanking troops of an army. 
Kel'entance, Hope, and hearty-milde Humility, 
Doo flank tin- wings of Faith 's triiimiihant Carr. 
Sylvester, tr. of Uu liartas's Triumph of Faith, i. 15. 
Where stately colonnades areflanki'd with trees. 
Pitt, Epistle to J. 1'itt. 
With its two little angels, and its tour flanking saints. 
D. G. Mitchell, Bound Together, ii. 
Specifically 2. Milit.: (n) To attack or threat- 
en the side or flank of; place troops so as to 
command, threaten, or attack the flank of. 
The British light companies were sent out to great dis- 
tam-i's, as Hanking parties ; but who was to flank the 
flankers? Eoerett, Orations, I. 91. 
(6) To pass round or turn the flank of; march 
or move along or past one side of, as an oppos- 
ing army, (r) To secure or guard the flank of: 
as, they flanked their position with abattis. 
Tin 1 ditch without hewn down exceeding broad, and of 
an incredible profundity, strongly jtankt, and notwanting 
what fortifications can doe. Sandys, Travailes, p. 182. 
II. in trans. To occupy a flank position; bor- 
der ; touch : with on. 
That side, which flank* on the sea and haven, needs no 
art to fortify it. Butler, Remains (Thyer's ed.), i. 417. 
flank a t (flangk), H. [< ME.flaunke, a spark or 
flake (of fire), prob. < Sw. flanka, a flake, a 
clod: a nasalized form of Norm, flak, Sw.flaga, 
etc., E. flake 1 : see flake 1 . Hardly connected 
with Dan. flunke, gleam, sparkle, G. dial. 
flunke, a spark, G. flinken, flinkern, equiv. to 
2253 
flannel, cf . gwlanog, woolly, < gtclan, wool, = E. 
icool, q. v.] I. n. 1. A warm loosely woven 
woolen stuff used especially for undergarments, 
bed-covering, etc., but also to some extent for 
flapdoodle 
A cartilaginous flap upon the opening of the lannx. 
.*'<'/ '/'. llniinif. 
Embroidered waistcoats with large //,. 1>:,-1, ,,- 
ggttiijgg 
K SKS? irss," strtns >" *&- *3 i .. . b 
and beer seasoned with nutmeg, sugar, etc. 
[Old cant.] 3f. A person of homely or un- 
couth dress, exterior, or manners. 
I am dejected : I am not able to answer the Welsh flan- 
nel [Sir Hugh Evans], Shak., M. W. of W., v. 5. 
Adam's flannel. See Adam. Canton flannel [Canton, 
accom. European form of Chinese Kwanqtuiicr, a city in 
China], a strong cotton cloth with a long soft nap, usually 
The r 
of M 
vn ruel 
flanks of Syr kid 1 Hakes ottufre 
ing a soft pile on one face. Gauze flannel, flannel of a 
loose and porous texture. Natural flannel, a felted 
layer of filamentous alga? with various other organisms 
which occur in wet meadows, upon the drying margins of 
ponds, etc. It has the appearance of coarse, spongy green 
cloth, becoming yellowish or grayish. Yard Of flannel 
Same as egg-flip. Zephyr flannel, a woolen stuff with 
a slight admixture of silk, fine and very soft. 
II. a. Made of flannel; consisting of flannel : 
as, flannel clothing. 
He was dressed in a greasy flannel gown, with his throat 
bare, and seemed to be dividing his attention between 
the frying-pan and a clothes-horse, on which a great num- 
ber of silk handkerchiefs were hanging. 
Dickens, Oliver Twist, vlil. 
flannel-cake (flan'el-kak), n. A kind of thin 
griddle-cake made with either wheat-flour or 
corn-meal, and raised with yeast. [U. S.] 
ui iji nuu UMWD VI OUU11C. jm VIM mm " I. - -J 
Alliterative poems (ed. Morris), ii. 953. flanneled, flannelled (flan'eld), a. [< flannel 
Flankes of Her. Uolinshed, Chron., Ireland, p. 143 + - ef ' 2 -] Covered with or wrapped in flannel. 
flankard (flang'kard), . \_< flank 1 + -ard. Cf. flannel-flower (flan'el-flou*6r),, 1. Themul- 
flancard, of same" ult, origin.] Among sports- kn, Fer6wctti Thaps,ts.-2. The Maerosipho- 
men, one of the knobs or nuts in the flanks of T* ^floi-a, an apocynaceous vine of Brazil, 
a d eer densely covered with woolly hairs. Its flowers 
flanked (flangkt), a. In her., same as flanched a are re . ma jkable for the length of the tube, 
especially, having flanches of the pointed or 5?B?!H!?', See ./Zanwefed. 
angular form flannellet (flan'el-et), n. [< flannel + -let.] A 
flanker 1 (flaug'ker), . [< flank, v., + -er 1 . Cf. for wearin^^r?/" 16 "* narr W P ieces > used 
which fl'ank'stas a skirmisher or bodyofTroops flannel-mouthed (flan'el-moutht), a. Having 
employed on the flank of an army to reconnoiter V nout , h * the appearance of flannel : as, the 
or guard a line of march, or a fortification pro- flannel-mouthed cat a fish (Ammrus nigricans) 
jecting so as to command the side of an assail- fl a f j he 8 at North American lakes, 
ing body flannen (flan en), n. and a. An obsolete ordia- 
In the sa'llies of their priny Posternes, for the defence le tal Varfant of fl annel - 
of the said counterscharfe, there were new flanckers made. Their sarks, instead of creeshie flannen, 
Hakluyt's Voyages, II. 122. Been snaw-white seventeen hunder linen ! 
If that thy Banter* be not eanon-proofe. Burns, Tarn o' Shanter. 
Marston, Antonio and Mellida, I., i. 1. In flannen robes the coughing ghost does walk. 
As daylight broke, the flankers and vedettes were thrown Dryden. 
W. fl. Rm,ell, Diary in India, II. 387. flanning (flan'ing), n. [< /2 + -iwj/1.] In 
2f. A side piece or flanked piece of timber, arch. : (a) The internal splay or bevel of a win- 
Cotgrave. dow-jamb. (6) The inner flare or coving of a 
flanker 1 ! (flang'ker), v. ^flanker 1 , n.] I. trans, fireplace. 
1. To defend by flankers or lateral fortiflca- flanque (flangk), n. [P.: see flank 1 .'] In her., 
tions. same &sflanch, 2. 
The city is compassed with a thick wall flankered and flanqued (flangkt), a. In her., same &sflanched. 
moated about. Sir T. Herbert, Travels in Africa, p. 40. flap (flap), n. [< ME. flap, flappe, a stroke, blow, 
I have . . . flankered my house, and resolve to main- buffet, a fly-flap, a loose, flexible part of a gar- 
tain it as long as a man will stand by me. 
Governor Winslow, New England's Memorial, 
[App., p. 466. 
And the grim, flankered block-house, bound 
With bristling palisades around. 
Whittier, Truce of Piscataqua. 
2. To attack sidewise or by the flank. 
II. intrans. To come on sidewise. 
Where sharp winds do rather flanker than blow fully 
opposite upon our plantations, they thrive best. 
Evelyn, Sylva, iii. 8. 
flanker 2 (flang'ker), n. [E. dial. ; cf . flank*.] 
A spark of fire. [Prov. Eng.] 
flanker^ (flang'ker), v. i. [Prob. a nasalized 
ment, etc., = D.flap, a stroke, blow, box on the as something broad or flap-like: as, the wind 
ear (cf. OD. flaVbe, a blow, a blow on the face, 
a fly-flap); from the verb.] 1. A stroke, blow, 
or buffet, as with the hand or with any weapon, 
etc. 
Preched of pcnaunces that Poule the apostle suffred, 
In fame ife frigore and flappes of scourges. 
Piers Plowman (B), xiii. 67. 
Flappe or stroke, ictus ; flappe or buffett, alapa. 
Prompt. Parv. , p. 163. 
The beggar with his noble tree 
Laid lusty flaps him to. 
Robin Hood and the Beggar (Child's Ballads, V. 192). 
MMMKB I yuomg AWJj V. t. I J. luu. Oi JlttBJtll/itJU rt m , ,. ,. .. . ^ , 
form of flacker, influenced by flank* which is ? The mot > n of anything broad and loose; a 
..14- ..~i~*. i T m~ _ __i_i-. jt--t naimmfr motion. 3. An instrument, fnr kp_ 
ult. related.] To sparkle; flicker. 
For who can hide the flanckring flame 
That still itselfe betrayes? 
Turberville, tr. of Ovid (1567), fol. 83. 
Byflanckeryng flame of flrie love 
To cinders men are worne. 
Kendall, Flowers of Epigrams (1577). 
flannel (flan'el), n. and a. [So. and E. obs. 
and dia.1. flannen; = D.flanel = Gr.flanell = Dan. 
flanel, flonet, = Sw. flanett, < OF. flanelle, F. 
flanclle = Sp. franela = Pg. flanella, also fari- 
nella = It. flanella, frenella, flannel. Origin 
doubtful ; referred by Diez and others to OF. 
Jl/iinc, a pillow-case, a feather-bed, mod. dial. 
flaine, a kind of ticking. The asserted deri- 
vation from W. gmlancn, flannel (Wedgwood, 
Skeat, and others), is improbable. W. gwlanen, 
flapping motion. 3. An instrument for keep- 
ing off flies by a flapping motion. 
Flappe, instrument to smyte wythe flyys [smite flies 
with], flabellum, muscarium. Prompt. Pan., p. 163. 
They had wooden flaps to beat them [flies] away. 
Coryat, Crudities, I. 150. 
4. Anything broad 
loose, or is attached 
easily moved ; that part of anything which pro- 
jects in such a form. The flap of a hat is that part 
of the brim which is turned up on one side, or is capable 
of being turned up ; the flap of a waistcoat, that part of 
the long waistcoat of the eighteenth century which came 
down upon the thigh, extending on either side below and 
beyond the lowest button. 
Why art thoti then exasperate, . . . thou green sarce- 
net flap for a sore eye, thou tassel of a prodigal's purse, 
thou? Shak., T. and C., T. 1. 
aie made for various purposes in surgieul operations, as 
for covering and growing over the end of an amputated 
limb, for forming a new nose (rhinoplasty), etc. 
7. pi. A disease in the lips of horses, in which 
they become blistered and swell on both sides. 
8. pi. A discomycetous fungus, Peziza coch- 
leata. 9. pi. A broadly expanded hymeno- 
mycetous fungus, probably Agaricus arvengig. 
[Yorkshire, Eng.j 
" pp. flapped, ppr. flap- 
flap, clap, slap, strike, 
. .- , flappeii), intr., flap (cf. F. 
Jrapner.ftxSke: see / rap); prob. ult. imitative; 
cf. clap 1 , slap, etc. ; cf. also flack, flabby.'] I. 
intrans. 1. To strike a blow with anything 
broad and flexible, as the hand; clap; make 
a noise like clapping. 
A fool man shal for joye flappe with hondis. 
Wyclif, Prov. xvii. 18. 
The Dira, or flying pest, which flapping on the shield of 
Turnus, and fluttering about his head, disheartened him 
in the duel. Dryden, Ded. of *neid. 
When windows flap and chimney roars, 
And all is dismal out of doors. 
Wordiworth, The Wagoner. 
2. To move in a waving or swaying manner, 
as wings, or as something broad or loose. 
My canvas torn, it flaps from side to side: 
My cable's crack'd, my anchor's slightly ty'd. 
Quarles, Emblems, iii. 11. 
As when a boat 
Tacks, and the slacken'd sail flaps. 
Tennyson, Princess, ii. 
3f. To burst out suddenly, as flames ; flash. 
Ten tymes be-tyde, tellis me the lyne, 
That hit test was on fyre, & flappit out onone 
Vuto smorther & smoke, and no sniethe low. 
Destruction of Troy (E. E. T. S.), 1. 11795. 
4. To fall like a flap, as the brim of a hat or 
other broad thing. 
I spoke with him, and took much notice of him : he had 
an old black hat on, that flapped, and a pair of Spanish 
leather shoes. 
State Trials, T. Whitebread and Others, an. 1679. 
II. trans. If. To strike; beat; slap; give a 
stroke of any kind to. 
Alle the flesche of the flanke he flappts in sondyre 
Morte Arthure (E. E. T. S.), 1. 2782. 
Rascall, dost flappe me in the mouth with tailer ; 
And tell'st thou me of haberdasher's ware? 
Rowlands, Knave of Harts (1613). 
2. To beat with or as if with a flap. 
For (quoth he) when many flies stoode feeding vppon 
his rawe flesh, and had well fed themsclues, he was con- 
tented at another's perswasion to haue them flapt awaie. 
Sir T. Wilson, Art of Rhetoric, p. 201. 
Yet let me flap this bug with gilded wings. 
Pope, Pi-ol. to Satires, 1. 409. 
3. To make or cause a swaying movement of, 
as something broad < 
flapped the shutters. 
Three times, all in the dead of night, 
A bell was heard to ring; 
And shrieking at her window thrice 
The raven flapp'd his wing. 
Tiekell, Colin and Lucy. 
The hooded hawks, high perched on beam, 
The clamour joined with whistling scream, 
And flapped their wings, and shook their bells. 
Scott, L. of L. M., vi. 6. 
4. To provide with a flap. 
With flapped oilskin hats we should have been weather- 
proof, but with one of these I was unprovided. 
Fronde, Sketches, p. 88. 
5. To let fall the flap of; move the flap of; 
especially, as in the case of a hat, to bring the 
flaps of forward and downward, so as to cover 
or protect the face. 6. To arouse the atten- 
tion of, as by flapping the ears: apparently in 
allusion to the "flappers" employed for such a 
and flexible that hangs P ur Pse in the feigned island of Laputa in "Gul- 
by one end or side, and llver ' s Travels." See extract from Swift, un- 
irt of anything which pro- der flVP tr > l - [Humorous. ] 
They sent their complaint to the Home Government, de- 
spatched an agent to London to itap the Colonial Office, 
and even secured a certain tepid interest for the question 
-en., LIII. 13. 
in the London press. 
Contemporary Rev 
flapdoodle (flap'do-dl), . [</;>, stroke (hence 
'natter' ?), + doodle, a simpleton, fool.] 1. 
The stuff on which fools are feigned to be nour- 
ished; food for fools. [Humorous.] 
