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flick 1 (flĭk)
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n.
1.
a. A light quick blow, jerk, or touch: a flick of the wrist; gave my horse a flick with the reins.
b. The sound accompanying this motion.
2. A light splash, dash, or daub.
v. flicked, flick·ing, flicks
v.tr.
1. To touch or hit with a light quick blow or fillip: flicked him with his hand.
2. To cause to move with a sudden movement or jerk: The guard flicked the light switch. The bird flicked its tail.
3. To propel or remove with a sudden movement, fillip, or light blow: flicked the lint off the coat.
v.intr.
1. To move in sudden or jerky manner: a horse's mane flicking in the wind.
2. To look through the parts of something by making quick movements with the fingers: flick through a book; flick through a crate of old records.
[Imitative.]
flicka·ble adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 
flick 2 (flĭk)
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n.
Slang
A movie.
[Short for FLICKER1.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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