flail
A tool used for threshing, consisting of a long handle with a shorter stick attached…A tool used for threshing, consisting of a long handle (handstock) with a shorter stick (swipple or swingle) attached with a short piece of chain, thong or similar material.
Recorded US: Dvortygirl, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
» Ziri started flailing in the water.
Amastan · Tatoeba · CC BY 2.0 FRMeaning
3 sensesA tool used for threshing, consisting of a long handle (handstock) with a shorter stick (swipple or swingle) attached with a short piece of chain, thong or similar material.
Flegel, Dreschflegel, plegel
цепcep
ціпcip
an implement consisting of handle with a free swinging stick at the end; used in manual threshing
A weapon which has the (usually spherical) striking part attached to the handle with a flexible joint such as a chain.
Flegel, Streitflegel, Kriegsflegel
кисте́ньkisténʹ
(often, plural)Part of a rotating device, often used for cutting vegetation.
Examples
8 sentencesZiri started flailing in the water.
Bruno suddenly woke up and flailed around.
Don't just flail around aimlessly. You need a plan.
Не крутись навколо безцільно. Тобі потрібен план. — Ahha
ruНе надо бесцельно метаться. Тебе нужен план. — Selena777
John started flailing his arms around and thought he was going to drown.
A flail is a weapon.
Translations
9 languagesBy meaning 1
By meaning 2
By meaning 2
Origin
From Middle English flayle, from earlier fleil, fleyl, fleȝȝl, from Old English fligel, *fFrom Middle English flayle, from earlier fleil, fleyl, fleȝȝl, from Old English fligel, *flegel (“flail”), from Proto-West Germanic *flagil, of uncertain origin. Cognate with Scots flail (“a thresher's flail”), West Frisian fleil, flaaiel (“flail”), Dutch vlegel (“flail”), German Flegel (“flail”). Possibly a native Germanic word from Proto-Germanic *flagilaz (“whip”), from Proto-Germanic *flag-, *flah- (“to whip, beat”), from Proto-Indo-European *pleh₂k- (“to beat, hit, strike; weep”); compare Old Norse flaga (“sudden attack, bout”), Lithuanian plàkti (“to whip, lash, flog”), Ancient Greek πληγνύναι (plēgnúnai, “strike, hit, encounter”), Latin plangō (“lament”, i.e. “beat one's breast”) + Proto-Germanic *-ilaz (instrumental suffix). If so, related also to English flag, flack, flacker.
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Dictionary text adapted from Wiktionary (Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Open English WordNet / Princeton WordNet (CC BY 4.0, WordNet License); shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. Example sentences and recordings are credited where they appear.