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In the 14th century, if someone told you that you had flair (or flayre as it was then commonly spelled), you might very well take offense. This is because in Middle English flayre meant "an odor." The word is derived from the Old French verb flairier ("to give off an odor"), which came, in turn, from Late Latin flagrare, itself an alteration of fragrare. (The English words fragrant and fragrance also derive from fragrare.) The "odor" sense of flair fell out of use, but in the 19th century, English speakers once again borrowed flair from the French—this time (influenced by the Modern French use of the word for the sense of smell) to indicate a discriminating sense or instinctive discernment.
Examples of flair in a Sentence
Caroline Frost, Deadline, 3 May 2025
The charms feature Sabre’s signature emoji twist for fun, whimsy, and a splash of French flair.
—Alesandra Dubin, Travel + Leisure, 2 May 2025
These are the other hotspots for upscale Greek flavors with contemporary flair and fine-dining finesse.
—Nicole Trilivas, Forbes.com, 1 May 2025
Within the album's 12 poetic tracks, Perez — who came out as a lesbian at 17 — explores her relationship with sexuality, religion and love with a Jeff Buckley-meets-Alanis Morissette-like flair.
—Ilana Kaplan, People.com, 1 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for flair
Cite this Entry
“Flair.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/flair. Accessed 18 May. 2025.
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flair
noun
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