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flaw - 7 dictionary results

flaw

1  [flaw]
Use flaw in a Sentence
–noun
1. a feature that mars the perfection of something; defect; fault: beauty without flaw; the flaws in our plan.
2. a defect impairing legal soundness or validity.
3. a crack, break, breach, or rent.
–verb (used with object)
4. to produce a flaw in.
–verb (used without object)
5. to contract a flaw; become cracked or defective.
Origin:
1275–1325; ME flaw(e), flage, perh. < ON flaga sliver, flake

Related forms:
flawless, adjective
flaw⋅less⋅ly, adverb
flaw⋅less⋅ness, noun

Synonyms:
1. imperfection, blot, spot. See defect. 3. fissure, rift.

flaw

2  [flaw]
–noun
1. Also called windflaw. a sudden, usually brief windstorm or gust of wind.
2. a short spell of rough weather.
3. Obsolete. a burst of feeling, fury, etc.
Origin:
1475–85; < ON flaga attack, squall

Related forms:
flawy, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To flaw
flaw 1   (flô)   
n.  
  1. An imperfection, often concealed, that impairs soundness: a flaw in the crystal that caused it to shatter. See Synonyms at blemish.
  2. A defect or shortcoming in something intangible: They share the character flaw of arrogance.
  3. A defect in a legal document that can render it invalid.
tr. & intr.v.   flawed, flaw·ing, flaws
To make or become defective.

[Middle English flaue, splinter, perhaps from Old Norse flaga, slab of stone; see plāk-1 in Indo-European roots.]
flaw 2   (flô)   
n.  
    1. A brief gust or blast of wind.
    2. A passing storm; a squall.
  2. Obsolete A burst of passion.

[Probably of Scandinavian origin; akin to Swedish flaga, gust of wind.]
flaw'y adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Flaw

Flaw\, n. [OE. flai, flaw flake; cf. Sw. flaga flaw, crack, breach, flake, D. vlaag gust of wind, Norw. flage, flaag, and E. flag a flat stone.]

1. A crack or breach; a gap or fissure; a defect of continuity or cohesion; as, a flaw in a knife or a vase.

This heart Shall break into a hundered thousand flaws. --Shak.

2. A defect; a fault; as, a flaw in reputation; a flaw in a will, in a deed, or in a statute.

Has not this also its flaws and its dark side? --South.

3. A sudden burst of noise and disorder; a tumult; uproar; a quarrel. [Obs.]

And deluges of armies from the town Came pouring in; I heard the mighty flaw. --Dryden.

4. A sudden burst or gust of wind of short duration.

Snow, and hail, and stormy gust and flaw. --Milton.

Like flaws in summer laying lusty corn. --Tennyson.

Syn: Blemish; fault; imperfection; spot; speck.

Flaw

Flaw\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Flawed; p. pr. & vb. n. Flawing.]

1. To crack; to make flaws in.

The brazen caldrons with the frosts are flawed. --Dryden.

2. To break; to violate; to make of no effect. [Obs.]

France hath flawed the league. --Shak.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : flaw
Spanish: defecto,
German: der Fehler,
Japanese: きず
More Translations »

flaw 
c.1325, "snowflake, spark of fire," from O.N. flaga "stone slab, flake" (see flagstone); sense of "defect, fault" first recorded 1586, first of character, later (1604) of material things; probably via notion of a "fragment" broken off.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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