Advertisement

Want to remove ads? Log in to see fewer ads, and become a Premium Member to remove all ads.

Origin and history of flick

flick(n.)

mid-15c., "light blow or stroke," probably imitative of a light blow with a whip. Earliest recorded use is in phrase not worth a flykke "useless." Meaning "quick turn of the wrist" is from 1897 in sports. As slang for "film," it is first attested 1926, a back-formation from flicker (v.), from their flickering appearance.

flick(v.)

1816, "to throw off with a jerk," from flick (n.). Meaning "strike lightly with a quick jerk" is from 1838. Related: Flicked; flicking.

also from 1816

Entries linking to flick

flicker(v.)

Middle English flikeren, from Old English flicorian "to flutter, flap quickly and lightly, move the wings," originally of birds. Onomatopoeic and suggestive of quick motion. With Germanic verbal suffix indicating repeated or diminutive action (see -er (4)). The sense of "shine with a wavering light" is c. 1600 but was not common before 19c. Related: Flickered; flickering.

    Advertisement

    Want to remove ads? Log in to see fewer ads, and become a Premium Member to remove all ads.

    Trends of flick

    adapted from books.google.com/ngrams/ with a 7-year moving average; ngrams are probably unreliable.

    More to explore

    flip
    1590s "to fillip, to toss with the thumb," imitative, or perhaps a thinned form of flap, or else a contraction of fillip (q.v.), which also is held to be imitative. Meaning "toss as though with the thumb" is from 1610s. Meaning "to flip a coin" (to decide something) is by 1879. S
    thumb
    Old English þuma, from Proto-Germanic *thūman- (source also of Old Frisian thuma, Old Saxon, Old High German thumo, German Daumen, Dutch duim "thumb," Old Norse þumall "thumb of a glove"), literally "the stout or thick (finger)," from PIE *tum- "swell," from root *teue- "to swell
    flirt
    1550s, "to turn up one's nose, sneer at;" later "to rap or flick, as with the fingers" (1560s); "throw with a sudden movement...Perhaps imitative (compare flip (v.), also East Frisian flirt "a flick or light blow," flirtje "a giddy girl," which also...
    chill
    Sheila E. sizzles in the new flick, Krush Groove, but some New York critics couldn't groove with it because many of the terms...
    production
    c. 1400, produccioun, "a coming into being," from Old French production "production, exhibition" (13c.) and directly from Medieval Latin productionem (nominative productio) "a prolonging, lengthening," noun of action from past-participle stem of Latin producere "bring forth" (see
    take
    Middle English taken, from late Old English tacan "to grip, seize by force, lay hold of," from a Scandinavian source (such as Old Norse taka "take, grasp, lay hold," past tense tok, past participle tekinn; also compare Swedish ta, past participle tagit). This is reconstructed to
    scene
    1530s, "subdivision of an act of a play," also "stage-setting," from French scène (14c.), from Latin scaena, scena "scene, stage of a theater," from Greek skēnē "wooden stage for actors," also "that which is represented on stage," originally "tent or booth," which is related to s
    snap
    1550s, perhaps late 15c., "a quick, sudden bite or cut; an eager seizing," from snap (v.), or, if the earlier date, a noun from Dutch or Low German snappen "to snap," which are probably related to Middle Low German or Middle Dutch snavel "bill, beak," which Watkins traced to a hy
    span
    [distance between two objects] Middle English spanne, a unit of length, from Old English span "distance between the thumb and the middle or little finger of an extended hand" (as a measure of length, roughly nine inches), probably related to Middle Dutch spannen "to join, fasten,

    Share flick

    Advertisement

    Want to remove ads? Log in to see fewer ads, and become a Premium Member to remove all ads.

    Trending
    Dictionary entries near flick
    Advertisement

    Want to remove ads? Log in to see fewer ads, and become a Premium Member to remove all ads.

    Want to remove ads? Log in to see fewer ads, and become a Premium Member to remove all ads.