Link Centre Dictionary

flying

UK/ˈflaɪ.ɪŋ/ US/ˈflaɪɪŋ/ common
adjective (7) noun (1)

adjective

1.

capable of or engaged in flight

  • “the bat is a flying animal”
Similar
2.

moving swiftly

  • “fast-flying planes”
  • “played the difficult passage with flying fingers”
Synonyms
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3.

streaming or flapping or spreading wide as if in a current of air

  • “ran quickly, her flaring coat behind her”
  • “flying banners”
  • “flags waving in the breeze”
Synonyms
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4.

designed for swift movement or action

  • “a flying police squad is trained for quick action anywhere in the city”
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5.

of or relating to passage through the air especially aviation

  • “a flying time of three hours between cities”
  • “unidentified flying objects”
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6.

hurried and brief

  • “paid a flying visit”
  • “took a flying glance at the book”
  • “a quick inspection”
  • “a fast visit”
Synonyms
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7.

done swiftly in or as if in the air; used e.g. of a racing start in which runners are already in motion as they cross the starting line

  • “a flying start”
  • “crossed the goal line with a flying leap”
Similar

noun

1.

an instance of traveling by air

  • “flying was still an exciting adventure for him”
Synonyms

Origin

From Middle English fleynge, fleeʒinge, flihinde, vlyinde, vleoinde, flyand, ffleghand, flighand (also fleoninde, fleonninde, etc.), from Old English flēogende, from Proto-Germanic *fleugandz (“flying”), present participle of Proto-Germanic *fleuganą (“to fly”), equivalent to fly + -ing. Cognate with Saterland Frisian fljoogend (“flying”), West Frisian fleanend (“flying”), Dutch vliegend (“flying”), German Low German flegend (“flying”), German fliegend (“flying”), Danish flyvende (“flying”), Swedish flygande (“flying”), Icelandic fljúgandi (“flying”).

Phrases

  • actual flying time
  • bush flying
  • elapsed flying time
  • flying ace
  • flying arch
  • flying army
  • flying baker
  • Flying Banana
  • flying bishop
  • flying boat
  • flying machine
  • flying school

Related words

Word family

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WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.