English word origin

Etymology of flam

17th century; from flim-flam, itself perhaps from a dialectal word or Scandinavian; compare Old Norse flim (“lampoon, mockery”).

2 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗

In this entry · 2 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗

noun

A freak or whim; an idle fancy. · A falsehood; a lie; an illusory pretext

verb

To deceive with a falsehood.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

17th century; from flim-flam, itself perhaps from a dialectal word or Scandinavian; compare Old Norse flim (“lampoon, mockery”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Cognate mentionflimnon

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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      "args": {
        "1": "non",
        "2": "flim",
        "3": "",
        "4": "lampoon, mockery"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Norse flim (“lampoon, mockery”)"
    }
  ],
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    [
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      "flim-flam"
    ],
    [
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      "lampoon"
    ],
    [
      "mockery",
      "mockery"
    ]
  ],
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  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
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        "A falsehood; a lie; an illusory pretext"
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        "To deceive with a falsehood."
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Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗

noun

Two taps (a grace note followed by a full-volume tap) played very close together in order to sound like one slightly longer note.

verb

To play (notes as) a flam.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Imitative.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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  "lexical": [
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      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
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      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 229851
    },
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To play (notes as) a flam."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "ambitransitive"
      ],
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Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for flam →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger

Machine-source provenance

Source SHA-256: 5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run: 73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID: w-ZmxhbQ