flat
Language: English
Part of speech: adj
Pronunciation: enpr: flăt
ipa: /flæt/
rhymes: -æt
Forms: form: flatter
form: flattest
form: flatt
form: flatte
Etymology: From Middle English flat, a borrowing from Old Norse flatr (compare Norwegian and Swedish flat, Danish flad), from Proto-Germanic *flataz, from Proto-Indo-European *pleth₂- (“flat”); akin to Saterland Frisian flot (“smooth”), German Flöz (“a geological layer”), Ancient Greek πλατύς (platús), Latvian plats, Sanskrit प्रथस् (prathas, “extension”). Doublet of plat and pleyt.
The noun is from Middle English flat (“level piece of ground, flat edge of a weapon”), from the adjective.
The algebraic sense was coined by Serre in a 1956 paper, originally as French plat.
Senses: examples: text: The land around here is flat.
glosses: Having no variations in height.
examples: text: a flat roof
glosses: Having no variations in height.
In a horizontal line or plane; not sloping.
examples: text: The surface of the mirror must be completely flat.
text: The carpet isn't properly flat in that corner.
text: She has quite a flat face.
text: The face which emerged was not reassuring. It was blunt and grey, the nose springing thick and flat from high on the frontal bone of the forehead, whilst his eyes were narrow slits of dark in a tight bandage of tissue. […].
ref: 1963, Margery Allingham, chapter 17, in The China Governess: A Mystery, London: Chatto & Windus, →OCLC:
glosses: Having no variations in height.
Smooth; having no protrusions, indentations or other surface irregularities, or relatively so.
examples: text: Near-synonym: flat-chested
text: That girl is completely flat on both sides.
glosses: Having no variations in height.
Having small or invisible breasts and/or buttocks.
examples: text: The exchange rate has been flat for several weeks.
glosses: Without variation in level, quantity, value, tone etc.
examples: text: Sales have been flat all year, and we've barely broken even.
glosses: Without variation in level, quantity, value, tone etc.
At a consistently depressed level; consistently lacklustre.
examples: text: a flat fee
text: flat rates
text: a flat fare on public transport
topics: business
commerce
glosses: Without variation in level, quantity, value, tone etc.
Of fees, fares etc., fixed; unvarying.
examples: text: He delivered the speech in a flat tone.
topics: entertainment
lifestyle
music
glosses: Without variation in level, quantity, value, tone etc.
Without variations in pitch.
qualifier: voice
topics: human-sciences
linguistics
phonetics
phonology
sciences
glosses: Without variation in level, quantity, value, tone etc.
Not diphthongal; without variation in height or backness.
raw_tags: of a vowel
examples: text: The walls were painted a flat gray.
glosses: Without variation in level, quantity, value, tone etc.
Without variation in tone or hue (uniform), and dull (not glossy).
synonyms: matte
raw_tags: of colours
examples: text: The party was a bit flat.
text: The market is flat today as most traders are on holiday.
text: The dialogue in your screenplay is flat — you need to make it more exciting.
text: February 16, 1833, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Table Talk
A large part of the work is, to me, very flat.
text: How weary, stale, flat, and unprofitable / Seem to me all the uses of this world.
ref: c. 1599–1602 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene ii]:
glosses: Lacking liveliness or action; depressed; uninteresting; dull and boring.
examples: text: The author added a chapter to flesh out the book's flatter characters.
topics: authorship
broadcasting
communications
film
journalism
literature
media
publishing
television
writing
glosses: Lacking liveliness or action; depressed; uninteresting; dull and boring.
Lacking in depth, substance, or believability; underdeveloped; one-dimensional.
antonyms: round
raw_tags: of a character
topics: entertainment
lifestyle
music
qualifier: note
glosses: Lowered by one semitone.
examples: text: Your A string is flat.
topics: entertainment
lifestyle
music
glosses: Of a note or voice, lower in pitch than it should be.
examples: text: His claim was in flat contradiction to experimental results.
text: I'm not going to the party and that's flat.
text: Wag[ner]. Vilaine, call me Maiſter Wagner, and let thy left eye be diametarily fixt vpon my right heele, with quaſi veſtigias nostras inſistere [as if to follow in our footsteps]. / Clo[wn]: God forgiue me, he ſpeakes Dutch fuſtian: / well, Ile folow him, Ile ſerue him, thats flat.
ref: 1589–1592 (date written), Ch[ristopher] Marl[owe], The Tragicall History of D. Faustus. […], London: […] V[alentine] S[immes] for Thomas Bushell, published 1604, →OCLC, signature [B4], recto:
text: SECOND WATCH. Marry, that he had received a thousand ducats of Don John for accusing the Lady Hero wrongfully.
DOGBERRY. Flat burglary as ever was committed
ref: 1598–1599 (first performance), William Shakespeare, “Much Adoe about Nothing”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene ii]:
text: A great Tobacco taker too, thats flat.
ref: 1602, John Marston, Antonio and Mellida, Malone Society Reprint, 1921, Act I, lines 324-326, He is made like a tilting staffe; and lookes For all the world like an ore-rosted pigge
glosses: Absolute; downright; peremptory.
glosses: Deflated, especially because of a puncture.
raw_tags: of a tire or other inflated object
glosses: With all or most of its carbon dioxide having come out of solution so that the drink no longer fizzes or contains any bubbles.
raw_tags: of a carbonated drink
topics: beverages
food
lifestyle
oenology
wine
glosses: Lacking acidity without being sweet.
glosses: Unable to emit power; dead.
raw_tags: of a battery
topics: arts
hobbies
juggling
lifestyle
performing-arts
sports
glosses: Without spin; spinless.
raw_tags: of a throw
topics: human-sciences
linguistics
phonetics
phonology
sciences
glosses: Sonant; vocal, as distinguished from a sharp (non-sonant) consonant.
raw_tags: of a consonant
examples: text: Many flat adverbs, as in 'run fast', 'buy cheap', etc. are from Old English.
topics: grammar
human-sciences
linguistics
sciences
glosses: Not having an inflectional ending or sign, such as a noun used as an adjective, or an adjective as an adverb, without the addition of a formative suffix; or an infinitive without the sign "to".
topics: golf
hobbies
lifestyle
sports
glosses: Having a head at a very obtuse angle to the shaft.
raw_tags: of a golf club
topics: agriculture
business
horticulture
lifestyle
glosses: Flattening at the ends.
raw_tags: of certain fruits
examples: text: He finished the race in a flat four minutes.
glosses: Exact.
raw_tags: of measurements of time
qualifier: homological algebra
glosses: Such that the tensor product preserves exact sequences. See Flat module on Wikipedia.Wikipedia.
raw_tags: of a module
topics: algebra
mathematics
sciences
qualifier: ring theory
glosses: Such that its target, regarded as a module over its source, is flat (as above).
raw_tags: of a ring homomorphism
topics: algebraic-geometry
geometry
mathematics
sciences
hyponyms: faithfully flat
qualifier: scheme theory
glosses: Such that the induced map on every stalk is flat (as a map of rings).
raw_tags: of a morphism of schemes
glosses: Having little froth and little milk.
raw_tags: of coffee
examples: text: We either burns the old brooms, or, if we can, we sells ’em for a ha’penny to some other boy, if he’s flat enough to buy ’em.
ref: 1851, Henry Mayhew, London Labour and the London Poor, published 1861:
glosses: Foolish; simple-minded.
Synonyms: sense: having no variations in altitude
word: even
sense: having no variations in altitude
word: planar
sense: having no variations in altitude
word: plane
sense: having no variations in altitude
word: smooth
sense: having no variations in altitude
word: uniform
sense: without variations in pitch
word: monotone
sense: uninteresting
word: boring
word: dull
word: uninteresting
word: boring
sense: deflated
word: deflated
sense: deflated
word: puncture
sense: of a carbonated drink: no longer fizzes
word: still
word: unfizzy
word: noneffervescent
sense: of wine: lacking acidity
word: flabby
Derived terms: absolutely flat
A-flat
aflat
and that's flat
B-flat
C-flat
D-flat
diaper flat
E-flat
faithfully flat
fall flat
fall flat on one's face
F-flat
flat adverb
flat affect
flat as a bedsheet
flat as a pancake
flat as my hat
flat as your hat
flatback
flat-backed millipede
flatbacker
flat back four
flatbed
flatbill
flat-blade screwdriver
flatboat
flat-bottom
flat-bottomed
flatbottomed
flat bottomed
flatbread
flat bread
flat bug
Flatbush
flat cake
flat candlestick
flat cap
flatcar
flat-chested
flatchested
flat cracker
flat crossing
flat design
flat diaper
flat dog
flat-earth
flat-earther
flat earthery
flat-earthism
flat-faced longhorn
flat-faced seahorse
flat fare
flat-felled seam
flat-fell seam
flatfield
flat file
flatfish
flat five
flat-footed
flatfooted
flatfoot
flat feet
flatform
Flathead
flathead
flat-headed cat
flat-headed
flatheaded
flat-heeled
flatification
flatiron
flat iron
flat iron steak
flat junction
flatland
flatlay
flatleaf
flatline
flatling
flatlings
flat lizard
flat lock
flatlock
flatly
flatmount
flat-mouthed
flat nappy
flatness
flatnose
flat on one's back
flat out
flat oval
flatpack
flat pack
flatpacked
flat peach
flatpick
flatpicking
flatplan
flat race
flat rail
flat rate
flat real mode
flat ride
Flat Rock
Flatrock
flatrod
flat rope
flat round
flatsawn
flatscape
flat scissors
flatscreen
flatsedge
flat silver
flat space
flat spin
flat spot
flat stick
flat-tail sea snake
flattard
flat tax
flat rate tax
flatten
flat text
flattie
flat time
flattish
flattop
flat-topped
flat-track bully
flat twist
flatty
flat tyre
flat tire
flat wagon
flatware
flat water
flatwater
flatweave
flatweed
flat white
flatwing
flatwise
flatwork
flatworm
flat-wound
flatwoven
flat wrack
fold flat
G-flat
in a flat spin
knock someone flat
layflat
like a cow on a flat rock
like a cow pissing on a flat rock
lined flat bark beetle
lying flat
nappy flat
nonflat
run-flat
semiflat
snow flat
superflat
that's flat
ultraflat