flicker

1 of 3

verb

flick·​er ˈfli-kər 

flickered; flickering ˈfli-k(ə-)riŋ 

intransitive verb

1

: to move irregularly or unsteadily : flutter

Shadows flickered on the wall.

2

: to burn or shine fitfully or with a fluctuating light

a candle flickering in the window

3

: to appear or pass briefly or quickly

Thoughts flickered through his mind.

A smile flickered across her face.

transitive verb

1

: to cause to flicker

2

: to produce by flickering

flicker

2 of 3

noun (1)

1

a

: an act of flickering

b

: a sudden brief movement

the flicker of an eyelash

c

: a momentary quickening

a flicker of anger

d

: a slight indication : hint

a flicker of recognition

2

a

: a wavering light

the flicker of a candle

b

: a repeated momentary defect in a cathode-ray tube image caused especially by slow scanning of the screen

3

dated, informal : movie

—often used in plural

flickery

ˈfli-k(ə-)rē 

adjective

flicker

3 of 3

noun (2)

: a large barred and spotted North American woodpecker (Colaptes auratus) with a brown back that commonly forages on the ground for ants compare red-shafted flicker, yellow-shafted flicker

Synonyms

Verb

• dance
• dart
• flick
• flirt
• flit
• flitter
• flutter
• zip

Noun (1)

• film
• flick
• motion picture
• movie
• moving picture
• picture

Examples of flicker in a Sentence

Verb

A TV was flickering in the background.

The overhead light kept flickering off and on.

Thoughts flickered through his mind.

A smile flickered across her face.

Noun (1)

as a child, the future director would spend hours sitting in the theater, totally entranced by the flickers

usually there's a flicker in car sales when the new models come out

there was a flicker of recognition in her eye when I mentioned his name, but she denied knowing him

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

In a darkened room, a sculpture made of theatrical lighting scaffolds flickered in and out of visibility, illuminated by lights that were set to move in time with music from Turner’s titular 1984 album—although no music played in the space. —Ellen Y. Tani, Artforum, 1 Dec. 2024

Growing up in Michigan, food writer Khushbu Shah celebrated Diwali with a string of parties, flickering diyas (oil lamps) and marigold flowers around the house, and mithais (sweets) sent from family in India. —Lisa Wong MacAbasco, Vogue, 31 Oct. 2024

Noun

There is a flicker of a promise near the end that at least one question will get a satisfying answer. —Joe Leydon, Variety, 2 Dec. 2024

Purple and white balloons reflected the soft flicker of candlelights as friends, family and teammates of 14-year-old Jai’den Winchester remembered him during a Wednesday night vigil as a respectful, sweet young man who loved sports and stood against bullying. —Matt Hubbard, Baltimore Sun, 7 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English flikeren, from Old English flicorian

Noun (2)

probably imitative of its call

First Known Use

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Noun (1)

1822, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun (2)

1809, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing flicker

• flea-flicker
• red-shafted flicker
• yellow-shafted flicker

Kids Definition

flicker

1 of 3 verb

flick·​er ˈflik-ər 

flickered; flickering -(ə-)riŋ 

1

: to move irregularly or unsteadily : flutter

2

: to burn unsteadily or with a constantly changing light

a flickering candle

flicker

2 of 3 noun

1

: an act of flickering

2

: a brief stirring

a flicker of interest

3

: a flickering light

flickery

ˈflik-(ə-)rē 

adjective

flicker

3 of 3 noun

: a large insect-eating North American woodpecker with a black crescent on the breast and yellow or red on the underside of the wings and tail compare red-shafted flicker, yellow-shafted flicker

Medical Definition

flicker

noun

flick·​er ˈflik-ər 

: the wavering or fluttering visual sensation produced by intermittent light when the interval between flashes is not small enough to produce complete fusion of the individual impressions