flicker
/ˈflɪkɚ/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: 3.10 in modern English
16
Scrabble Score
7
Letters
2
Syllables
7
Unique Chars
Meaning
verb
To keep going on and off; to appear and disappear for short moments; to flutter.
Intransitive verb
noun
One who flicks.
Example Sentences
- "the flicker of the dying candle"
- "the flicker of an old movie"
- "a flicker of emotion"
- "a flicker of hope"
- "a flicker of recognition passed through my mind."
- "It was a casual sneer, obviously one of a long line. There was hatred behind it, but of a quiet, chronic type, nothing new or unduly virulent, and he was taken aback by the flicker of amazed incredulity that passed over the younger man's ravaged face."
Etymology
From Middle English flikeren (“to flutter”), from Old English flicerian, flicorian (“to flutter”), from Proto-West Germanic *flikurōn. Akin to Saterland Frisian flikkerje (“to flicker”), West Frisian flikkerje (“to flicker”), Dutch flikkeren (“to flicker, flutter”), German Low German flickern (“to light up, flash, flicker”). Compare Old English flacor (“flickering, fluttering”), German flackern (“to flicker, flutter”), Old English flēogan (“to fly”).
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: flikeren, flicerian, *flikurōn
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈflɪkɚ/
- British English: /ˈflɪkə/
Usage
- Countable
- Uncountable
- Intransitive verb
- American usage
- Colloquial
Inflected Forms
Derived Forms
Phrases
Flicker Alley
flicker fixer
flicker noise
flicker show
flicker wheel
flicker goon
Andean flicker
Bermuda flicker