flash

flash1 [ flæʃ ] verb **

▸ 1 shine for short time

▸ 2 appear for short time

▸ 3 pass quickly

▸ 4 show sudden emotion

▸ 5 show sex organs

▸ + PHRASES

1. ) intransitive to shine brightly for a very short time, or to shine on and off very quickly:

Thunder roared and lightning flashed.

His watch flashed in the sunlight.

flashing neon signs

a ) transitive to switch a bright light on, or on and off, especially as a signal:

A truck drove close behind me and flashed its headlights.

2. ) intransitive to appear for a very short time and then quickly disappear:

flash across/by/on/past: The faces of Hollywood's most glamorous stars flashed across the screen.

a ) transitive to communicate something very quickly and for a short time, for example a message, image, or look:

flash something across/on/to something: They flashed weather warnings on the screen.

Our nerves flash messages to the brain.

flash someone something: Ted flashed me a huge grin and looked away.

b ) intransitive if a thought flashes across your mind, it comes and goes very quickly:

flash across/through/into: The thought that I might die flashed through my mind.

3. ) intransitive to pass very quickly:

Traffic flashed past us in the other lane.

The week seemed to flash by.

4. ) intransitive MAINLY LITERARY if someone's eyes flash, a sudden strong emotion appears in them, especially anger

5. ) intransitive if a man flashes, he commits the crime of showing his sex organs in public in order to frighten or upset people

,flash `around phrasal verb transitive

to show something to a lot of people because you want to impress them:

If you're carrying a lot of cash, don't flash it around.

`flash on phrasal verb transitive AMERICAN INFORMAL

flash on something to realize or remember something:

I suddenly flashed on the fact that the two were related.

flash

flash 2 [ flæʃ ] noun *

▸ 1 bright light/color

▸ 2 sudden understanding

▸ 3 sudden emotion

▸ 4 sudden appearance

▸ 5 display of riches

▸ + PHRASES

1. ) count a bright light that appears for a very short time:

a flash of lightning

The bomb exploded with a blinding flash.

a ) a bright color that you see for a very short time:

The little bird swooped down with a flash of blue.

b ) a bright light on a camera that flashes as you take a photograph in order to provide enough light

2. ) count a sudden understanding or idea:

a flash of inspiration/insight/brilliance etc.: It's a dull book, but there are occasional flashes of insight.

3. ) count a sudden instance of a particular emotion:

flash of: a flash of anger/humor/panic

4. ) singular the sudden appearance of an object for a very short time:

the flash of a knife

5. ) uncount INFORMAL behavior that is intended to impress other people by showing them how rich you are

a flash in the pan SPOKEN

someone or something that is popular or successful for a very short time only

in a flash/like a flash/quick as a flash

very quickly:

She was at his side in a flash.

flash

flash 3 [ flæʃ ] adjective

1. ) INFORMAL expensive and new in a way that is intended to impress people

a ) INFORMAL if someone is flash, they own expensive things in order to show how much money they have. This word usually shows that you do not like people like this.

2. ) involving a very quick process:

flash freezing