flare

1 of 2

noun

ˈfler 

1

: a fire or blaze of light used especially to signal, illuminate, or attract attention

also : a device or composition used to produce such a flare

The airport set flares to guide the landing plane at night.

2

a

: an unsteady glaring light

b

: solar flare

also : a sudden increase and decrease in the brightness of a star often amounting to a difference of several magnitudes (see magnitude sense 3)

3

a

: a sudden outburst (as of excitement or anger)

a flare of tempers in the courtroom

b

: flare-up sense 3

a flare of disease

4

a

: a spreading outward

also : a place or part that spreads

b

: an area of skin flush

a flare of reddened skin

5

: light resulting from reflection (as between lens surfaces) or an effect of this light (such as a fogged or dense area in a photographic negative)

6

a

: a short pass in football thrown to a back who is running toward the sideline

b

: a weakly hit fly ball in baseball

a flare into short right field

7

flares plural : pants that flare toward the bottom

flare

2 of 2

verb

flared; flaring

intransitive verb

1

a

: to burn with an unsteady flame

b

: to stream in the wind

2

a

: to shine with a sudden light

a match flares in the darkness

b(1)

: to become suddenly excited or angry

—usually used with up

(2)

: to break out or intensify usually suddenly or violently

—often used with up

c

: to express strong emotion (such as anger)

3

: to open or spread outward

the pants flare at the bottom

transitive verb

1

: to display conspicuously

flaring her scarf to attract attention

2

: to cause to flare

the breeze flares the candle

3

: to signal with a flare or by flaring

4

: to burn (a jet of waste gas) in the open air

Synonyms

Noun

• burst
• flare-up
• flash
• flicker
• flurry
• flutter
• outbreak
• outburst
• spurt

Verb

• beat
• blaze
• burn
• flame
• glare

Examples of flare in a Sentence

Noun

the sudden flare of the match

When the crew saw flares, they knew the other ship was in trouble.

Verb

pants that flare at the bottom

The bull flared its nostrils.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

But the energy released during that flare is only one-hundredth of the enery thought to be associated with a superflare, the researchers say. —Gayoung Lee, Smithsonian Magazine, 16 Dec. 2024

The multitouch technology enhanced the versatility of the material creating different styles, from wide-leg to balloon and flare and 3D effects, like whiskers and cracked looks. —Andrea Onate, WWD, 11 Dec. 2024

Verb

The rhythm section, helmed by multi-instrumentalist Brad Cook works wonders, flickering and flaring in tandem with Crutchfield’s mighty but nimble voice. —Stephen Kearse, TIME, 8 Dec. 2024

In June 2020, Willis demanded Trump stop using his music after the then-president threatened to use military force to stop protests that had flared up nationwide following the police killing of George Floyd. —Conor Murray, Forbes, 5 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Verb

origin unknown

First Known Use

Noun

1580, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

1616, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1a

Phrases Containing flare

• flare-up
• solar flare
• tempers flare

Kids Definition

flare

1 of 2 noun

ˈfla(ə)r 

ˈfle(ə)r

1

: a fire or blaze of light used to signal, light up something, or attract attention

also : a device or material that produces such a flare

2

: an unsteady glaring light

3

: flare-up

4

: a spreading outward

also : a place or part that spreads

5

plural : bell-bottom trousers

flare

2 of 2 verb

flared; flaring

1

: to burn with an unsteady flame

2

a

: to shine or blaze suddenly

b

: to become suddenly excited or angry

flare up

3

: to open or spread outward

pants that flare at the bottom

Medical Definition

flare

1 of 2 intransitive verb

ˈfla(ə)r, ˈfle(ə)r 

flared; flaring

: to break out or intensify rapidly : become suddenly worse or more painful

—often used with up

your gallstones flare up

—W. A. Nolen

flare

2 of 2 noun

1

: flare-up

Without effective urate lowering, many such patients progress to severe chronic gout characterized by frequent arthritic flares …

—John S. Sundy et al., The Journal of the American Medical Association

2

: an area of skin flush resulting from and spreading out from a local center of vascular dilation and hyperemia

urticarial flare

3

: a cloudy or smoky appearance of the fluid of the anterior chamber of the eye that is seen when a beam of light (as from a slit lamp) is passed through it and that is caused by the presence of floating protein material in the fluid which is a symptom of inflammation

Flare means that we can actually see the beam of light from the slit lamp traveling through the aqueous humor. This is similar to being able to see the beam of light coming from a movie projector in a dusty room.

—Jay B. Lavine, The Eye Care Sourcebook

called also aqueous flare