flat

having a horizontal surface in which no part is higher or lower than another

• “a flat desk”
• “acres of level farmland”
• “a plane surface”

having no depth or thickness

not modified or restricted by reservations

• “a categorical denial”
• “a flat refusal”

stretched out and lying at full length along the ground

• “found himself lying flat on the floor”

lacking contrast or shading between tones

lowered in pitch by one chromatic semitone

• “B flat”

flattened laterally along the whole length (e.g., certain leafstalks or flatfishes)

lacking taste or flavor or tang

• “a bland diet”
• “insipid hospital food”
• “flavorless supermarket tomatoes”
• “vapid beer”
• “vapid tea”

lacking stimulating characteristics; uninteresting

• “a bland little drama”
• “a flat joke”

having lost effervescence

• “flat beer”
• “a flat cola”

not increasing as the amount taxed increases

not made with leavening

• “most flat breads are made from unleavened dough”

parallel to the ground

• “a flat roof”

without pleats

lacking the expected range or depth; not designed to give an illusion or depth

• “a film with two-dimensional characters”
• “a flat two-dimensional painting”

(of a tire) completely or partially deflated

not reflecting light; not glossy

• “flat wall paint”
• “a photograph with a matte finish”

lacking variety in shading

• “a flat unshaded painting”

a level tract of land

a shallow box in which seedlings are started

a musical notation indicating one half step lower than the note named

freight car without permanent sides or roof

a deflated pneumatic tire

scenery consisting of a wooden frame covered with painted canvas; part of a stage setting

a suite of rooms usually on one floor of an apartment house

at full length

• “he fell flat on his face”

with flat sails

• “sail flat against the wind”

below the proper pitch

• “she sang flat last night”

against a flat surface

• “he lay flat on his back”

in a forthright manner; candidly or frankly

• “he didn”
• “;”
• “;”

wholly or completely

• “He is flat broke”