English word origin

Etymology of flop

Recorded since 1602, probably a variant of flap with a duller, heavier sound.

3 source sectionsBrief source recordWiktionary original ↗

In this entry · 3 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 · variant 1/2

Original entry ↗

noun

A heavy, passive fall; a plopping down. · A complete failure, especially in the entertainment industry. · The first three cards turned face-up by the dealer in a community card poker game. · Dung, as in cow-flop.

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

Recorded since 1602, probably a variant of flap with a duller, heavier sound.

This page abbreviates 1 auxiliary source items. The etymology narrative is not shortened. Omission counts are available in the audit fields below; consult the original for complete auxiliary material.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

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    [
      "flap",
      "flap#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [
    {
      "lang": "Chinese",
      "lang_code": "zh",
      "word": "胡蘿蔔",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Traditional-Chinese"
      ],
      "roman": "húluóbo"
    },
    {
      "lang": "Chinese",
      "lang_code": "zh",
      "word": "胡萝卜",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed"
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Simplified-Chinese"
      ],
      "roman": "húluóbo"
    }
  ],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A heavy, passive fall; a plopping down.",
        "A complete failure, especially in the entertainment industry.",
        "The first three cards turned face-up by the dealer in a community card poker game.",
        "Dung, as in cow-flop."
      ],
      "tags": [],
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    }
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}

Source etymology 1 · variant 2/2

Original entry ↗

adv

Right, squarely, flat-out. · With a flopping sound.

intj

Indicating the sound of something flopping.

verb

To fall heavily due to lack of energy. · To cause to drop heavily. · To fail completely; not to be successful at all (of a movie, play, book, song etc.). · To pretend to be fouled in sports, such as basketball, hockey (the same as to dive in soccer)

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

Recorded since 1602, probably a variant of flap with a duller, heavier sound.

This page abbreviates 5 auxiliary source items. The etymology narrative is not shortened. Omission counts are available in the audit fields below; consult the original for complete auxiliary material.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

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    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "adv",
      "glosses": [
        "Right, squarely, flat-out.",
        "With a flopping sound."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "not-comparable"
      ],
      "recordId": "2d36ac389c6f90c56cf4cb13765d1d9470c9a7c0a51527e389cd8b818b55111b",
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    },
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      "pos": "intj",
      "glosses": [
        "Indicating the sound of something flopping."
      ],
      "tags": [],
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      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 213301
    },
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To fall heavily due to lack of energy.",
        "To cause to drop heavily.",
        "To fail completely; not to be successful at all (of a movie, play, book, song etc.).",
        "To pretend to be fouled in sports, such as basketball, hockey (the same as to dive in soccer)"
      ],
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        "intransitive",
        "transitive",
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}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗

noun

Abbreviation of floating-point operation. · One floating-point operation per second, a unit of measure of processor speed.

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

A variant capitalization of FLOP, a syllabic acronym of floating-point operations.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

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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 flop →

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-ZmxvcA