Added 9 October 2026
flirt
/flɜːt/ noun
noun Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about flirt at Wordnik → Where our words come from →
verb
-
Talk or behave amorously, without serious intentions.
The guys always try to chat up the new secretaries
-
Behave carelessly or indifferently.
Play about with a young girl's affection
Origin
1553, from the merger of Early Modern English flirt (“to flick”), flurt (“to mock, jibe, scorn”), and flirt, flurt (“a giddy girl”). Of obscure origin and relation. Apparently related to similar words in Germanic, all of apparently onomatopoeic origin, compare Low German flirt (“a flick of the fingers, a light blow”), Low German flirtje (“a giddy girl”), Low German flirtje (“a flirt”), German Flittchen (“a flirt; tart; hussy”), Norwegian flira (“to giggle, titter”).
From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)