flee
/ˈfliː/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: 3.81 in modern English
7
Scrabble Score
4
Letters
1
Syllables
3
Unique Chars
Meaning
Example Sentences
- "The prisoner tried to flee, but was caught by the guards."
- "The wicked flee when no man pursueth: but the righteous are bolde as a lyon."
- "As they turned into Hertford Street they startled a robin from the poet's head on a barren fountain, and he fled away with a cameo note."
- "When, however, the plant spirits were not strong enough in themselves, then the family called in the Medicine Man. He appeared, a "monster of so frightful mien", with noise making apparatus which produced such a terrifying din that even the hardiest demon was likely to flee."
- "Huntingdon's ferocity makes the reaction of staff all the more brave. To move towards danger when others are fleeing is the definition of bravery in my book. To place yourself in danger to protect others."
- "Many people fled the country as war loomed."
Etymology
From Middle English flen, from Old English flēon, from Proto-West Germanic *fleuhan, from Proto-Germanic *fleuhaną, from Proto-Indo-European *plewk-, *plew- (“to fly, flow, run”). Cognate with Dutch vlieden, German fliehen, Icelandic flýja, Swedish fly, Gothic 𐌸𐌻𐌹𐌿𐌷𐌰𐌽 (þliuhan). Within English, related to fly and more distantly to flow.