flop (v.)
c. 1600, "to flap," probably a variant of flap with a duller, heavier sound. Sense of "fall or drop heavily" is 1836; that of "collapse, fail" is 1919; though the figurative noun sense of "a failure" is recorded from 1893. Related: Flopped; flopping.
flop (n.)
1823, "act of flopping; any action that produces the sound 'flop;' the sound itself," from flop (v.). Figurative sense of "a failure; that which is a failure" is by 1893, from the notion of a sudden break-down or collapse. Extended form flopperoo is attested by 1936. The Fosbury flop high-jumping technique (1968) is so called in reference to U.S. athlete Dick Fosbury (b. 1947), who used it to win the 1968 Olympic gold medal.
updated on March 31, 2020
Dictionary entries near flop
flood-plain
flood-tide
floor
flooring
floozie
flop
flophouse
floppy
flora
floral
Florence
