flattery 
flatarin),<.flaler, flatter: see flatter?.] The act flatUOUS (ttat'u-us), a. [= F. 
of one who flatters; t'ulse. insincere, or venal 
praise ; obsequiousness ; adulation ; cajolery. 
Would I had never trod this Knslish ,-arth, 
Or felt thefliitlirii-s that grow upon it! 
Ye have angels' faces, but Ilcavi-n knows your hearts. 
Shak., Hen. VIII., iii. 1. 
Some praises proceed merely at flatter if, and if it be 
an ordinary flatterer, he will have certain common attri- 
butes which may serve every man ; if he be a cunning flat- 
terer he will follow the arch-flatterer, which is a man's 
ge [{ ' liaeiin, Praise (ed. 1887). 
= *1>- 
jlntiiii.il>, jliiiiixu = Pg. flatuso = It. flatin>.*i>, < 
L. as if "flatHOeue, < flatut, a blowing, etc-. : sec 
flnlii.1. flatulent.'] Flatulent; windy; generat- 
ing wind; like wind; hence, empty; vain. 
N/i- lliu. I am very angry. 
Com. Do not suffer-, though, 
That tlntiiu.i indy choler of your heart 
To move the clapper of your understanding. 
Ii. Juniun, Magnetick Lady, iii. 3. 
What if some flatt'ring blast 
Utfliiliiinix honour should perchance be there, 
And whisper in thine ear ': 
Quarles, Emblems, ii. 10. 
flautino 
flaughter'-' (fla'-, Sc. tiiicii'ti'T). v. i. |Sc. ;iisn 
tlniii-litri-; si t'rcq. v.-rln <jlin/ ; /lil-, n Make, taken 
'in sense of E. dial, ftaight, a piece of turf, a flag 
(of turf) : see ftaughfi and flag*.'] To pare or 
cut a flake or portion of, as of turf. [I'rov. 
Eng. and Scotch.] 
flaughter 2 (fla'-, Sc. fliich ' ter), n. [Sc. also 
jliiui-hter; cf. flaughter 2 , <., cut (turf), and 
'flitiii/ht-, n., u flake.] A flake; a piece of turf. 
See flaui/lit-. [Prov. Eng. and Scotch.] 
= Syn Cuiuiilinieiii. Adulation, Flattery, etc. (seeadula- 
tim); 'sycophancy, fawning, blandishment. 
flatting (ttat'ing), . [Verbal n.of/Z<i,.] 1. fl a tuousneS8 (flat'u-us-nes), n. 
A method of preserving unburmshed gilding, pro< i uce flatulence.' 
by touching it with size; also the coating r Con{e88e i wo ,,der 
of size laid over the gilding. 2. A mode ot 
house-painting in which the paint, from mix- 
ture with turpentine, leaves the work flat or fl a t us (fla ' tus), 
Same as 
without gloss. 3. The rolling out of metal 
into sheets by the pressure of rolls or cylinders. 
4. In letitlicr-manuf., a method of dressing 
shaved hides. 5. In sheet-glass munuf., the 
operation of flattening. 6. In music, the act of 
depressing a tone below a true or given pitch. 
flatting-coat (flat'ing-kot), . The finishing 
coat on a painted wall, where four or five coats 
are laid on : so called because it dries without 
gloss. It is of pure white lead diluted only 
with spirits of turpentine. See flatting, 2. 
flatting-furnace (flat'ing-fer"na' 
flattening-furimee. 
flatting-hearth (flat'ing-harth), M. Same as 
flatten! ii(/-lii'(irth. 
flatting-mill (flat'ing-mil), it. Same asflatten- 
ing-niill. 
flatting-plate, flatting-stone (flat 'ing -plat, 
-ston), . Same asflatteniny-stone. 
flatting-tool (flat'ing-tol), . 1. A plumbers' 
tool used to flatten sheet-lead or dress it to the 
required shape. 2. Same as flatteniny-tool. 
flat-tool (flat'tol), n. 1. A chisel having a 
square end and cutting faces at the sides and 
end : used in turning. 
Flat tools for turning hard wood, ivory, and steel are 
ground with the stone running towards the operator. 
O. Byrne, Artisan's Handbook, p. 28. 
flaughter-spade (fla'-, Sc. fliieh'ter-spad), n. 
Same us i/in>/-a/iit(le. [Scotch.] 
flaunt, " See flawn. 
Tendency to flaunch (flanch), n. In her., same as flunch, '2. 
flaunchert, aeejl<i>ic/r. 
at it my self, that I should turne Flaundrisht, . Same as I'linnlrixli. 
I can impute it to nothing but the flatuousnesse of flaunt (fliiut or flant), c. [Formerly also Jlu n I : 
prob. Scand. The nearest form appears to be 
Sw. dial, flankt, adj. and adv., loosely, flutter- 
ingly (cf. ~E. flaunt-a-flauitt, a.),<flanka, waver, 
hang and wave about, ramble, a nasalized form 
of Sw. dial, flakka, waver, prob. = ME.flacken, 
move to and fro, flutter, palpitate, E. flack, q. v. 
Cf. G. dial. (Ba.v.)fl<indern, flutter, flaunt.] I. 
intrans. It. To wave or flutter smartly in the 
wind. 
I see not one, within this glasse of mine, 
Whose fethers flaunt, and flicker In the winde. 
Gasemgue, Steele Glas (ed. Arber), p. 63. 
2. To make a smart show in apparel or equip- 
ment of any kind; make an ostentatious or 
brazen display ; move or act ostentatiously or 
brazenly ; be glaring or gaudy : sometimes with 
an indefinite it: as, a flaunting show. 
My neighbour Flamborough's rosy daughters, flaunting 
with red top-knots. Goldsmith, Vicar, ix. 
One flaunts in rags, one flutters ill brocade. 
Pope, Essay on Man, iv. 196. 
Can those neat black clothes . . . give you half the hon- 
est vanity with which you flaunted it about in that over- 
worn suit? Lamb, Elia, Old China. 
The poppy flaunted, for 'twas May. 
Bryant, Day-Dream. 
II. trans. To display ostentatiously, impu- 
dently, or offensively: as, to flaunt rich ap- 
parel. 
Was this a time for these tn flaunt their pride? 
Tennyiton, Aylmer's Field. 
Ward, Simple Cobler, p. 90. 
v , [< L. flatus, a blowing, 
breathing, a breath, < flare, blow, breathe, = 
E. 6toil.] 1. A breath; a puff of wind; a 
pure expulsion of air from the lungs through 
the throat and mouth. 
You make the soul, as being a mere flatus, to have a 
more precarious subsistence even than mere matter itself. 
Clarke, To Dodwell, p. 31. 
2. Wind present in the stomach or intestines; 
eructation. 
In tympanites there Is a rapid generation of flatus, which 
overpowers the contractility of the hollow viscera. 
Quain, Med. Diet., p. 514. 
3. Inflation ; puffiness ; the state of being dis- 
tended with air, as a tumor Flatus vocis, the 
breath of the voice. This phrase is much used to describe 
the opinion of the early nominalist, Roscellin, whose writ- 
ings are lost, but who, according to the xindisputed testi- 
mony of his enemy, Anselm, held that universals (such 
as man in general) are the breath of the voice. 
flat-ware (flat' war), n. In ceram., plates, dishes, 
saucers, and the like, collectively, as distin- 
guished from hollow-ware. 
flatways (flat'waz), adv. Same as flatwise. 
It is preferable to place the bricks flatwayn. 
C. T. Davis, Bricks, etc., p. 180. 
flatwise (flat'wiz), adv. [< flafl- + -wise.'] With 
the flat side downward or next to another ob- 
ject ; not edgewise. 
Its posture in the earth VB flat mite, and parallel to the 
2. In seal-engraving, an elongated conical tool site O j tne stratum in which it was reposited. 
used for bringing ribbons or monograms to a Woodward, Fossils. fl aun t (ttaut or flant), u. 
flat surface. flatworm (flat'werm), n. [< flat 1 + worm.'] A act of flaunting. 
platyhelminth ; one of the Platyhelmintlies, as 
a tapeworm : a name applied to animals of the 
planarian group. See cut under Dendrocoela. 
See flaughter 2 . 
\< flaunt, e.] 1. The 
flattop (flat'top), n. An American perennial 
herb, VernoniaNoveboracensis. Also called iron- 
flatulence (flat'u-lens), . [= F. flatulence = n a"uchter~(ach 5 ter), v. and n. 
Sp. Pg. flatuleneia"= It. flatulenza, < NL. flatu- [Scotch.] 
lentus, flatulent: see flatulent.'] The state of flaught, v. t. An obsolete variant of flay*. 
being flatulent, or affected by wind in the stom- flaught 1 (flat, Sc. flacht), . [Sc., alsojvritten 
ach or other portion of the alimentary canal 
windiness; hence, airiness; emptiness; vanity 
The principal cause of flatulence is fermentation or de 
composition of the contents of the stomach and bowels A &* o' dows. Edinburgh Mag., Sept., 1818, p. 155. 
\fU(Hll, JM-Cu. IMi'I. 
flatulency (flat'u-len-si), ,, Same as^^c,. . A flutter, as that ^Wgyfr 
The natural flatulency of that airy scheme of notions . f , . ljke a e wr its wings j unlp inp u p 
Glanmlle. ^J^ Ga ^ gir Andrew Wylie, II. 5. 
flaught 2 (flat, Sc. flacht), n. [E. dial. tHso_flant, 
flatulent 
Pg. . 
a bio wing 
Windy; a 
stomach or other portion of the alimentary canal 
and coming up through the mouth. 
Flatulent accumulation in the intestines may be due 
. to putrefaction of the food. 
Lankester, Med. Guide, p. 165. 
Who heeds the silken tassel's fla tint 
Beside the golden corn '! 
0. W. Holmes, Our Yankee Girls. 
2. Any thing displayed for show; finery. [Rare.] 
Or how 
Should I, in these my borrow'd JtomKl, behold 
The sternness of his presence? Shak., \V. T., iv. 3. 
3. A boast ; a vaunt ; a brag. 
Dost thou come hither with thy flourishes, 
Thy flaunts, and faces, to abuse men's manners? 
Fletcher (anil anittlter), False One, iii. 3. 
flaunt-a-flauntt (flant'a-flanf), (i. [< flaunt + 
a$, prep., + flaunt; cf.' aflauut.] Flauntingly 
displayed. 
High copt hattes, and fethers flavnt a flaunt. 
Steele Glas (ed. Arber), Epil., p. 83. 
One who flaunts. 
[Ppr. of 
A/IOwj L 
[Scotch.] 
There was neither moon nor stars naething but a 
tlaiK'fit o' flre every now and than, to keep the road by. 
Blackwood's Mag., Nov., 1820, p. 202. 
.] 
2. Turgid with air; windy: as, 8, flatulent tumor. 
3. Generating or apt to generate wind in the 
stomach. 
Vegetables abound more with aerial particles than ani- 
mal substances, and therefore are more flat ulent. 
Arbuthnvt, Aliments, vi. . a .. .,.^ 
v, flaught 2 (flat, Sc. flacht), ?'. t. 
4. Empty; vain; pretentious; without sub- To ^ ard (woo i) j n t o thin flakes, 
stance or reality; puffed up: as, flatulent van- 
ity. 
The age of apassion is not long, and, the flatulent spirit 
being breathed out, the man begins to abate of his first 
heats. Jer. Taylor, Works (ed. 1835), I. 692. 
His [Tasso's] story is not so pleasing as Ariosto's ; he is 
too flatulent sometimes, and sometimes too dry. 
Dri/den, Orig. and Prog, of Satire. 
flatulently (flat'u-lent-li), adv. In a flatulent 
manner; windiiy'; 'emptily, 
flatuosityt (flat-n-os'i-ti), . [= F. flatuosite -v,/ ti ,\ 
= PS 1latuosi<l<iae = It. flatuosita; as flatuous flaughter 1 (na -, Sc. flacn ter), . 
+ -%.] Flatulence. <'] A fluttering motion. [Scotch.] 
w^e^essf an^U^^ '" *" """^ ^ ^ W^^^^nl^tl^d^" 1 '' 
ilitlland, tr. of Pliny, xxviii. 19. 
2. A flake (of fire) ; a spark; a flash. " "o. "w.llubnes, Spring has Come. 
A flaijht [printed slayht] of flre. Cursor Mnndi, 1. 17342. flauntingly (fliin'- or flan'ting-li), adv. In a 
3. A handful. [Scotch.] 4. A flake or roll of flaunting manner. 
wool carded ready for spinning. 5. pi. Tools A gem was now [in the time of the Ptolemies! a thing 
for carding wool, used chiefly in Scotland. Ure, to be worn flauntinglj/. 
Diet., II. 402 A flaught o' flre, a flash of lightning, flaunty (flan'- or flan'ti), <i. [(flaunt + -y l .~\ 
1. Ostentatious; vulgarly or offensively showy ; 
gaudy. Also flaunting. 
Your common men 
Build pyramids, gauge railroads, reign, reap, dine, 
And dust the flamity carpets of the world 
For kings to walk on, or our senators. Mrs. Rrmemny. 
2. Capricious; unsteady; eccentric. [Scotch.] 
She was a flaunt;/ woman, and liked well to have a good- 
humoured jibe or jeer. Gait, Annals of the Parish, p. 198. 
flaut (flat), n. See flaughft. 
flautando (It. pron. flao-tSn'do). . [It., ppr. of 
fldutare, play the flute: seeflutel, ,..] lurmlni- 
playing, with harmonics or flageolet-tones. 
Whiles he wad hae seen a glance o' the light frae the fl au j a t o (flao-ta'to), a. [It., pp. of fla iitiiri', 
door o^ the cave flauyhtering a ain ^ JJ le ^^ u s " "'* play the flute : see flautando.'] Same as flau- 
(fla/-, Sc. fliich't6r), v. [Sc. written 
flauchter,flochter; a freq. verb; < flaught 1 , flight, 
flying, flutter, perhaps suggested by flacker or 
flutter, with which, however, it has no connec- 
tion.] I. trans. To frighten. [Prov. Eng.] 
II intrans. To flutter; shine fitfully; flicker. 
[Scotch.] 
. 
Davidson, Seasons, p. 42. 
tando. 
flautino (flao-te'no), . [It., dim. of flatilo, flute: 
see flute 1 , n.'] 1. A small flute ; a piccolo. 2. 
A small accordion. 3. A direction to violin- 
players to play in harmonics. 
