Word: flag Part of Speech: verb Etymology: From Middle English flag, flagge (“flag”), further etymology uncertain. Perhaps from or related to early Middle English flage (name for a baby's garment) and Old English flagg, flacg (“cataplasm, poultice, plaster”). Or, perhaps ultimately imitative, or otherwise drawn from Proto-Germanic *flaką (“something flat”), from Proto-Indo-European *pleh₂- (“flat, broad, plain”), referring to the shape. Germanic cognates include Saterland Frisian Flaage (“flag”), West Frisian flagge (“flag”), Dutch vlag (“flag”), German Flagge (“flag”), Swedish flagga (“flag”), Danish flag (“flag, ship's flag”). Compare also Middle English flacken (“to flutter, palpitate”), Swedish dialectal flage (“to flutter in the wind”), Old Norse flögra (“to flap about”). Akin to Old High German flogarōn (“to flutter”), Old High German flogezen (“to flutter, flicker”), Middle English flakeren (“to move quickly to and fro”), Old English flacor (“fluttering, flying”). More at flack, flacker. Pronunciation: /flæɡ/, /flaɡ/, /flaːɡ/, /flæːɡ/, /fleɪ̯ɡ/ 1. To furnish or deck out with flags. 2. To mark with a flag, especially to indicate the importance of something. Example: Walcott was, briefly, awarded a penalty when he was upended in the box but referee Phil Dowd reversed his decision because Bendtner had been flagged offside. 3. To signal to, especially to stop a passing vehicle etc. Labels: often, with-down Example: Please flag down a taxi for me. Example: The electric locomotive is accompanied by a shunter who, in addition to his normal duties, flags the trains over the unprotected level crossings and opens the gates through which the line passes. 4. To convey (a message) by means of flag signals. Example: to flag an order to troops or vessels at a distance 5. To note, mark or point out for attention. Labels: often, with-up Example: I've flagged up the need for further investigation into this. Example: Users of the Internet forum can flag others' posts as inappropriate. 6. To signal (an event). Example: The compiler flagged three errors. 7. To set a program variable to true. Example: Flag the debug option before running the program. 8. To decoy (game) by waving a flag, handkerchief, etc. to arouse the animal's curiosity. Example: This method of hunting, however, is not so much practised now as formerly, as the antelope are getting continually shyer and more difficult to flag. 9. To penalize for an infraction. Example: The defender was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct. 10. To lose on time, especially in a blitz game; when using a traditional analog chess clock, a flag would fall when time expired. Labels: intransitive Example: Mark Dvoretsky (2014), For Friends & Colleagues, volume 1, →ISBN: “Indeed, I usually spent an hour to an hour and a half on my game, never found myself in time pressure, never once flagged in my entire life, except in blitz games, of course.” 11. To defeat (an opponent) on time, especially in a blitz game. Labels: transitive Example: White was winning positionally, but Black managed to flag him and win. 12. To point the muzzle of a firearm at a person or object one does not intend to fire on. 13. To fail, such as a class or an exam. Example: After he flagged Algebra, Mike was ineligible for the football team. 14. In female canids, to signal mating readiness by moving the tail aside to expose the vulva. Example: During estrus, most bitches will flirt with males by backing up to them, flagging their tails in the males’ faces, urinating frequently, and generally acting seductive. Example: She will avert her tail to the side (flagging), standing still when the male mounts.