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flops

American

[flops] / flɒps /

noun

Computers.

a measure of computer speed, equal to the number of floating-point operations the computer can perform per second (used especially in combination withmega-, giga-, tera- ).

flops British

acronym

floating-point operations per second: used as a measure of computer processing power (in combination with a prefix)

megaflops
gigaflops

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of flops

First recorded in 1985–90; shortening of fl(oating-point) op(erations per) s(econd)

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.

But there have been plenty of epic flops, too.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 6, 2026

Decade by decade, age by age, the world flip flops between the two.

From Barron's • Jan. 5, 2026

She’s had her own fair share of flops and bad business decisions, as well as ample successes.

From Salon • Dec. 22, 2025

The filmmaker returned to form, following several commercial flops, with 2007's The Bucket List, which starred Nicholson alongside Morgan Freeman as two terminally ill men who set about fulfilling their life ambitions before they die.

From BBC • Dec. 15, 2025

Ben flops onto his stomach beside me, pressing his hands to his face.

From "What If It's Us" by Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023