flagrant

[ fley-gruhnt ]

adjective

1. shockingly noticeable or evident; obvious; glaring:

   a flagrant error.

2. notorious; scandalous:

   a flagrant crime; a flagrant offender.

   Synonyms: egregious, monstrous, disgraceful

3. Archaic. blazing, burning, or glowing.

flagrant

/ ˈfleɪɡrənt /

adjective

1. openly outrageous
2. obsolete.
   burning or blazing

Derived Forms

• ˈflagrancy, noun
• ˈflagrantly, adverb

Other Word Forms

• flagran·cy flagrance flagrant·ness noun
• flagrant·ly adverb
• non·flagrance noun
• non·flagran·cy noun
• non·flagrant adjective
• non·flagrant·ly adverb
• un·flagrant adjective
• un·flagrant·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of flagrant¹

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Latin flagrant- (stem of flagrāns ), present participle of flagrāre “to burn”; -ant

Word History and Origins

Origin of flagrant¹

C15: from Latin flagrāre to blaze, burn

Synonym Study

Flagrant, glaring, gross, outrageous, rank are adjectives suggesting extreme offensiveness. Flagrant, with a root sense of flaming or flaring, suggests evil or immorality so evident that it cannot be ignored or overlooked: a flagrant violation of the law. Glaring, meaning “shining brightly,” is similar to flagrant in emphasizing conspicuousness but usually lacks the imputation of immorality: a glaring error in computing the interest. Gross, which basically signifies excessive size, is even more negative in implication than the foregoing two terms, suggesting a mistake or impropriety of major proportions: a gross miscarriage of justice. Outrageous describes acts so far beyond the limits of decent behavior or accepted standards as to be totally insupportable: an outrageous abuse of the public trust. Rank, with its suggestion of bad odor, describes open offensiveness of the most objectionable kind, inviting total and unalloyed disapprobation: rank dishonesty, stinking to high heaven; Only rank stupidity would countenance such a step.

Example Sentences

"The targeted killing of rescue workers - who are protected under international humanitarian law - constitutes a flagrant violation of the Geneva Conventions and a war crime," he said.

From BBC

Two, that the claim that “I had measles as a kid and I’m fine” is a flagrant example of survivorship bias.

From Salon

"A flagrant violation," was Cairo's strongly worded response.

From BBC

He sued arguing that his firing was in “flagrant disregard” of the law.

From Los Angeles Times

Dellinger sued, arguing his firing without cause was in “flagrant disregard” of the law.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• atrocious
• bold
• brazen
• conspicuous
• disgraceful
• egregious
• glaring
• heinous
• notorious
• obvious
• outrageous
• shameful
• shameless
• shocking
• undisguised