flake out
Britishverb
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Drop from exhaustion, faint. For example, After running the marathon, be simply flaked out on the ground . This expression possibly is derived from a now obsolete meaning of flake , “to become flabby or fall in folds.” [ Slang ; c. 1940]
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Lie down, go to sleep, as in Homeless persons flaked out in doorways . [ Slang ; early 1940s]
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Lose one's nerve, as in Please don't flake out now . [ Slang ; 1950s]
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Go crazy; also, cause someone to go crazy. For example, She just flaked out and we had to call an ambulance , or This project is flaking us out . The usages in def. 3 and 4 probably are derived from the adjective flaky , meaning “eccentric.” [c. 1970]
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Die, as in He flaked out last night . [1960s]
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Surprise, astonish, as in She said she'd just been made a partner, and that flaked me out . This usage appears to be a variant of freak out . [c. 1970]
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“Some people will always flake out, but I found that people also appreciated being invited in, and someone else making it happen.”
From Seattle Times • Aug. 16, 2023
“I think what he did was absolutely right to take himself out of the microcosm of Formula One and step aside and flake out socially,” he added.
From Seattle Times • Feb. 18, 2022
Twice I have asked Jane to take me to the airport, only for her to flake out at the last minute.
From Slate • Apr. 23, 2018
“When you flake out, it means you’re making a choice, and that choice reveals your true values,” he says.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 11, 2016
"Time was," said Cousin Hetty, "when we used to flake out fish, but since brother and old Amos went into the fish business, we generally use the shredded fish."
From Mrs. Wilson's Cook Book Numerous New Recipes Based on Present Economic Conditions by Wilson, Mary A.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
