English Explanatory Dictionary

flannel

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. A soft cloth material originally woven from wool, today often combined with cotton or synthetic fibers.
  2. A washcloth.
  3. A flannel shirt.
  4. Soothing, plausible untruth or half-truth; claptrap.
  5. Synonym of flip (“hot mixture of beer, spirit, etc.”).
adj
  1. Made of flannel.
verb
  1. To rub with a flannel.
  2. To wrap in flannel.
  3. To flatter; to suck up to.
  4. To waffle or prevaricate.

Pronunciation

/ˈflænəl/ En-au-flannel.ogg

Word forms

flannel flannels flannen flanan flanning flanen flanneling flannelling flanneled flannelled

Etymology

From Middle English flaunneol, from Anglo-Norman flanelle (compare Norman flianné), diminutive of Old French flaine, floene (“coarse wool”), from Gaulish, from Proto-Celtic *wlānos, *wlanā (“wool”) (compare Welsh gwlân, Breton gloan), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂wĺ̥h₁neh₂. More at wool.

Synonyms

flip fawn toady apple-polish bootlick bow and scrape brownnose butter up dickride duchess fawn over fellate flannel honey around honey up kiss someone's ass kiss someone's ring kiss up kowtow lick someone's ass lick someone's balls overflatter overpraise overrate suck up

Derived words

Adam's flannel Canton flannel Crimean flannel face flannel flannelboard flannelbush flannel cake flannel dance flannelette flannel flower flannelgraph flannel leaf flannellike flannelly flannel moth flannel-mouthed flannelmouth flannel-mouth flannel mouth flannel panel flannelweed flannen flannie flanno outing flannel unflannelled Welsh flannel
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