flipper

noun

flip·​per ˈfli-pər 

plural flippers

1

a

: a broad flat limb (as of a seal or cetacean) adapted for swimming

b

: a flat shoe (as of rubber or silicone) with the front expanded into a paddle that is used to aid movement through water (as in snorkeling or scuba diving)

called also fin, swim fin

2

: someone or something that flips or is used in flipping

spatulas and pancake flippers

pinball flippers

He worked as a burger flipper.

A flipper is a person who changes TV channels just to see what else is on.

—Springfield (Massachusetts) Morning Union

He also interviews house "flippers" who buy cheap property with an eye toward making some inexpensive improvements to spruce it up and then quickly "flipping" it, or reselling it at a value-added price for a tidy profit.

—James Prichard

Examples of flipper in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The teams placed tracking tags on the turtles’ flippers or shells and released them into the Gulf. —Smithsonian Magazine, 7 Mar. 2025

But every once in a while the flippers offer up designs that are actually easy to replicate and shockingly affordable. —Maggie Horton, People.com, 5 Mar. 2025

With their flippers wrapped around each other, two penguin chicks recently hatched at a Michigan zoo, marking a moment of hope for their species. —Kate Linderman, Kansas City Star, 12 Mar. 2025

Rochester in New York, ranking fourth, provides a stable market for flippers. —Matt Robison, Newsweek, 18 Feb. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1819, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for flipper

• chipper
• clipper
• dipper
• gripper
• kipper
• nipper
• ripper
• shipper
• skipper
• slipper
• stripper
• tipper

Kids Definition

flipper

noun

flip·​per ˈflip-ər 

1

: a broad flat limb (as of a seal or whale) used for swimming

2

: a flat rubber shoe with the front widened into a paddle for use in skin diving