Photographybright artificial light thrown briefly upon a subject during a photographic exposure.
the bulb or mechanism producing such light.
v.
to (cause to) break forth into sudden flame or light, esp. briefly or irregularly: [no object]The light on the police car was flashing.[~ + object]The police car flashed its lights.
to gleam:[no object]The cat's eyes flashed in the darkness.
to send forth like a flash:[~ + object]She flashed a dazzling smile.
to appear suddenly:[no object]The answer flashed into his mind.
to send a message quickly by electronic means:[~ + object]The reporters flashed the story to the studio in New York.
to display briefly:[~ + object]She flashed her ID card at the guard.
adj.
sudden and brief:[before a noun]a flash fire; a flash flood.
a brief, sudden burst of bright light:a flash of lightning.
a sudden, brief outburst or display of joy, wit, etc.
a very brief moment; instant:I'll be back in a flash.
Informal Termsflashlight (def. 1).
superficial, meretricious, or vulgar showiness; ostentatious display.
JournalismAlso called news flash. a brief dispatch sent by a wire service, usually transmitting preliminary news of an important story or development. Cf. bulletin (def. 2).
[Photog.]
Photographybright artificial light thrown briefly upon a subject during an exposure.
PhotographySee flash lamp.
Photographyflashbulb.
Photographyflashtube.
the sudden flame or intense heat produced by a bomb or other explosive device.
a sudden thought, insight, inspiration, or vision.
Slang Termsrush (def. 25).
[Metall.]
Metallurgya ridge of metal left on a casting by a seam between parts of the mold.
Metallurgya ridge formed at the edge of a forging or weld where excess metal has been squeezed out.
Games[Poker.]a hand containing all five suits in a game played with a five-suit pack.
a device, as a lock or sluice, for confining and releasing water to send a boat down a shallow stream.
the rush of water thus produced.
See hot flash.
[Obs.]the cant or jargon of thieves, vagabonds, etc.
Idiomsflash in the pan:
a brief, intense effort that produces no really significant result.
a person who makes such an effort; one who enjoys short-lived success.
v.i.
to break forth into sudden flame or light, esp. transiently or intermittently:a buoy flashing in the distance.
to gleam.
to burst suddenly into view or perception:The answer flashed into his mind.
to move like a flash.
to speak or behave with sudden anger, outrage, or the like (often fol. by out):to flash out at a stupid remark.
to break into sudden action.
Slang Termsto open one's clothes and expose the genitals suddenly, and usually briefly, in public.
Slang Termsto experience the intense effects of a narcotic or stimulant drug.
to dash or splash, as the sea or waves.
[Archaic.]to make a flash or sudden display.
v.t.
to emit or send forth (fire or light) in sudden flashes.
to cause to flash, as powder by ignition or a sword by waving.
to send forth like a flash.
to communicate instantaneously, as by radio or telegraph.
to make an ostentatious display of:He's forever flashing a large roll of bills.
to display suddenly and briefly:She flashed her ID card at the guard.
to change (water) instantly into steam by pouring or directing onto a hot surface.
to increase the flow of water in (a river, channel, etc.).
Ceramics[Glassmaking and Ceram.]
to coat (plain glass or a glass or ceramic object) with a layer of colored, opalescent, or white glass.
to apply (such a layer).
to color or make (glass) opaque by reheating.
[Building Trades.]to protect from leakage with flashing.
Games[Cards.]to expose (a card) in the process of dealing.
[Archaic.]to dash or splash (water).
Slang Termsflash on:
to have a sudden thought, insight, or inspiration about.
to have a sudden, vivid memory or mental picture of:I just flashed on that day we spent at the lake.
to feel an instantaneous understanding and appreciation of.
adj.
sudden and brief:a flash storm.
showy or ostentatious.
caused by or used as protection against flash:flash injuries; flash clothing.
counterfeit or sham.
belonging to or connected with thieves, vagabonds, etc., or their cant or jargon.
of or pertaining to followers of boxing, racing, etc.
1350–1400; Middle English flasshen to sprinkle, splash, earlier flask(i)en; probably phonesthemic in origin, originally; compare similar expressive words with fl- and -sh
flash′ing•ly, adv.
1.See corresponding entry in Unabridged flare, gleam, glare.
3.See corresponding entry in Unabridged twinkling, wink.
19.See corresponding entry in Unabridged scintillate. Flash,glance,glint,glitter mean to send forth a sudden gleam (or gleams) of bright light. To flash is to send forth light with a sudden, transient brilliancy:A shooting star flashed briefly.To glance is to emit a brilliant flash of light as a reflection from a smooth surface:Sunlight glanced from the glass windshield.Glint suggests a hard bright gleam of reflected light, as from something polished or burnished:Light glints from silver or from burnished copper.To glitter is to reflect intermittent flashes of light from a hard surface:Ice glitters in the moonlight.
42.See corresponding entry in Unabridged flashy, gaudy, tawdry; pretentious, superficial.
44.See corresponding entry in Unabridged false, fake.
FLASH(flash),USA pronunciationn.
Militarya precedence code for handling messages about initial enemy contact or operational combat messages of extreme urgency within the U.S. military.