Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

flay

/fleɪ/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: 2.49 in modern English

Syllables
flay
IPA
/fleɪ/
10
Scrabble Score
4
Letters
1
Syllables
4
Unique Chars

Meaning

verb

To cause to fly; put to flight; drive off (by frightening).

British usage; Transitive verb

verb

To frighten; scare; terrify.

British usage; Transitive verb

verb

To be fear-stricken.

British usage; Intransitive verb

noun

A fright; a scare.

British usage

noun

Fear; a source of fear; a formidable matter; a fearsome or repellent-looking person.

British usage

verb

To strip the skin off; to skin.

verb

To lash or whip.

name

A surname.

Example Sentences

Etymology

From Middle English flayen, flaien, fleien, from Old English flīeġan ("to cause to fly, put to flight, frighten"), from Proto-Germanic *flaugijaną (“to let fly, cause to fly”), causative of Proto-Germanic *fleuganą (“to fly”).

Origin

Word Breakdown

  • Root: flayen, flīeġan, *flaugijaną, *fleuganą, flen, flēan

Usage

Inflected Forms

flays (present, singular) flaying (participle, present) flayed (participle, past) flayed (past) fla (alternative) fley (alternative) flee (alternative) fly (alternative) fleg (alternative) flae (alternative) flea (alternative) flays (plural)

Derived Forms

flaying flaysome beflay flail flayer unflayed

Phrases

flay someone alive

Synonyms

fleece flense skin

Homonyms

fley

Rhymes With

they way may day say one-way away play today pay stay re

Questions

How do you pronounce flay?
The recorded pronunciation is /fleɪ/.
What does flay mean?
To cause to fly; put to flight; drive off (by frightening).
Where does flay come from?
It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce flay

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “flay”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/fleɪ/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “flay”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “flay” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.