English Online Dictionary. What means flush? What does flush mean?
English
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈflʌʃ/
- Rhymes: -ʌʃ
Etymology 1
From Middle English flusshen, fluschen, of uncertain origin. Perhaps related to Middle English flasshen, flasschen, flaschen, see flash; or a Middle English blend of flowen (“to flow”) + guschen (“to gush”). Compare with German flutschen.
Noun
flush (plural flushes)
- A group of birds that have suddenly started up from undergrowth, trees, etc.
Verb
flush (third-person singular simple present flushes, present participle flushing, simple past and past participle flushed)
- (transitive) To cause to take flight from concealment.
- Synonyms: drive, flush out, scare up
- (intransitive) To take suddenly to flight, especially from cover.
Translations
Etymology 2
Same as Etymology 3, according to the American Heritage Dictionary.
Adjective
flush (comparative flusher, superlative flushest)
- Smooth, even, aligned; not sticking out.
- Wealthy or well off.
- (typography) Short for flush left and right: a body of text aligned with both its left and right margins.
- Synonyms: forced, forced justified, force justified, justified
- Full of vigour; fresh; glowing; bright.
- Affluent; abounding; well furnished or suppled; hence, liberal; prodigal.
Derived terms
- flush left, flush right, flush left and right, flush mount, flush mounted, flush mounting, flush cast, non-flush, semi-flush
Translations
Adverb
flush (not comparable)
- Suddenly and completely.
Etymology 3
Probably from Etymology 1 according to the American Heritage Dictionary.
Noun
flush (plural flushes)
- A sudden flowing; a rush which fills or overflows, as of water for cleansing purposes.
- Particularly, such a cleansing of a toilet.
- (computing) The process of clearing the contents of a buffer or cache.
- A suffusion of the face with blood, as from fear, shame, modesty, or intensity of feeling of any kind; a blush; a glow.
- Any tinge of red colour like that produced on the cheeks by a sudden rush of blood.
- A sudden flood or rush of feeling; a thrill of excitement, animation, etc.
- (skiing) A line of poles or obstacles that a skier must weave between.
Derived terms
Translations
Verb
flush (third-person singular simple present flushes, present participle flushing, simple past and past participle flushed)
- (transitive) To cleanse by flooding with generous quantities of a fluid.
- (transitive) Particularly, to cleanse a toilet by introducing a large amount of water.
- (intransitive) To become suffused with reddish color due to embarrassment, excitement, overheating, or other systemic disturbance, to blush.
- (transitive) To cause to blush.
- To cause to be full; to flood; to overflow; to overwhelm with water.
- (transitive) To excite, inflame.
- (intransitive, of a toilet) To be cleansed by being flooded with generous quantities of water.
- (transitive, computing) To clear (a buffer or cache) of its contents.
- (transitive, computing, of data held in a buffer or cache) To write (the data) to primary storage, clearing it from the buffer or cache.
- To flow and spread suddenly; to rush.
- To show red; to shine suddenly; to glow.
- (masonry) To fill in (joints); to point the level; to make them flush.
- (mining, intransitive) To operate a placer mine, where the continuous supply of water is insufficient, by holding back the water, and releasing it periodically in a flood.
- (mining) To fill underground spaces, especially in coal mines, with material carried by water, which, after drainage, constitutes a compact mass.
- (intransitive, transitive) To dispose or be disposed of by flushing down a toilet
Usage notes
In sense “turn red with embarrassment”, blush is more common. More finely, in indicating the actual change, blush is usual – “He blushed with embarrassment” – but in indicating state, flushed is also common – “He was flushed with excitement”.
Synonyms
- (turn red with embarrassment): blush
Derived terms
Translations
Etymology 4
Probably from Middle French flus (“flow”), cognate with flux.
Noun
flush (plural flushes)
- (poker) A hand consisting of all cards with the same suit.
Derived terms
Descendants
- → French: flush
- → Japanese: フラッシュ (furasshu)
- → Korean: 플러쉬 (peulleoswi)
- → Portuguese: flush
Translations
See also
French
Etymology
Borrowed from English flush.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /flœʃ/
Noun
flush m (plural flushs)
- (poker) flush
- Synonym: couleur
- (anglicism) flush (reddening of the face)
- (anglicism, information technology) emptying of the cache
Derived terms
- quinte flush
Derived terms
- flusher
Portuguese
Etymology
Unadapted borrowing from English flush.
Noun
flush m (plural flushes)
- (poker) flush (hand consisting of all cards with the same suit)