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flake1
—flakeless, adj. —flaker, n./flayk/, n., v., flaked, flaking.n.1. a small, flat, thin piece, esp. one that has been or become detached from a larger piece or mass: flakes of old paint.2. any small piece or mass: a flake of snow.3. a stratum or layer.4. Slang. an eccentric person; screwball.5. Slang. cocaine.6. a usually broad, often irregular piece of stone struck from a larger core and sometimes retouched to form a flake tool.v.i.7. to peel off or separate in flakes.8. to fall in flakes, as snow.v.t.9. to remove in flakes.10. to break flakes or chips from; break into flakes: to flake fish for a casserole.11. to cover with or as if with flakes.12. to form into flakes.[1350-1400; (n.) ME; akin to OE flac- in flacox flying (said of arrows), ON flakka to rove, wander, MD vlacken to flutter; (in def. 4) by back formation from FLAKY, in sense "eccentric, odd"; (v.) late ME: to fall in flakes, deriv. of the n.]flake2/flayk/, n.a frame, as for drying fish.[1300-50; ME flake, fleke < ON flaki, fleki bridge, hurdle]flake3/flayk/, n., v., flaked, flaking. Naut.n.1. fake2 (defs. 1, 2).v.t.2. fake2 (def. 3).3. to lower (a fore-and-aft sail) so as to drape the sail equally on both sides over its boom.[1620-30; appar. var. of FAKE2]flake4/flayk/, v., flaked, flaking. flake out, Slang.to fall asleep; take a nap.[1935-40; perh. expressive var. of FLAG3; cf. Brit. dial. flack to hang loosely, flap]
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Universalium. 2010.
