flex

1 of 3

verb

flexed; flexing; flexes

transitive verb

1
: to bend especially repeatedly
2
a
: to move muscles so as to cause flexion of (a joint)
b
: to move or tense (a muscle) by contraction
3
: use, demonstrate
flexing her skills as a singer

intransitive verb

1
: bend
2
informal
a
: to talk in a boastful or aggressive way
"Bronze" is one of the most straightforward new tracks: a boastful and insidiously dark song that sees him flexing about his many wins.Raisa Bruner
often used with on to indicate the person, group, etc. at whom the talk is directed
Hip-hop has never just been about selling drugs, flexing on haters, and threatening enemies, as many like to portray it.Aaron Williams
… he … went searching for criticism, then tried to flex on a random criticizer.Ashley Feinberg
"… And if President Trump is going to continue to flex on China, whether it's with tariffs, whether it's just talking tough and tweeting tough, that still draws a very stark contrast between himself and the Democratic Party. …"Mattie Duppler
b
: to make an ostentatious display of something : show off
While tons of influencers love to flex on Instagram via designer bags and other luxury splurges, others are all about that perfect high-low balance …Bella Gerard
often used with on to indicate the person, group, etc. at whom the display is directed
It's in-your-face branding that is all about flexing on your friends in their more common, more conventional limousines.Max Finkel

flex

2 of 3

noun (1)

plural flexes
1
: an act or instance of flexing or bending
[Trae] Young finished with 22 points, seven assists and two steals—and a muscle flex after the game-winner.Chris Vivlamore
2
: flexibility, pliancy
The … fillet blade has a nice flex to it.Matt Foster
3
informal : an act of bragging or showing off
Monster (1994) was R.E.M.'s weird flex: an over-the-top rock album saturated with distortion, propelled by power chords and guitar feedback, and voiced by singer Michael Stipe's newly found enthusiasm.David Gill

flex

3 of 3

noun (2)

plural flexes
chiefly British
: an electric cord
Phrases
flex one's muscles
: to demonstrate one's strength
an exaggerated need to flex his political musclesJ. P. Lash

Examples of flex in a Sentence

Verb He flexed the muscles of his right arm. a material that flexes easily
Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
Instead, Shakira flexes the progression of her longstanding craft. Thania Garcia, Variety, 22 Mar. 2024 Goldberg has long flexed her penchant for snacks on the program, with the Oscar-winning actress even munching on another mystery treat that randomly appeared beside her in a bowl that wasn't present at the top of the show. Joey Nolfi, EW.com, 20 Mar. 2024 To wit, three stars of Doug Liman’s Road House remake flexed some striking wrist candy at a photo call in London on Thursday. Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 16 Mar. 2024 On a recent afternoon, a woman posed in front of the quote, flexing her biceps as a man photographed her. Valerie Hopkins, New York Times, 15 Mar. 2024 Kim is touting a grassroots campaign in the primary, while Murphy, a former Republican with immense personal wealth, is flexing her connections to some of the state's power brokers, who have a heavy hand in shaping local races, including through helping set the ballot order. Tal Axelrod, ABC News, 14 Mar. 2024 Led by Forbes’ 26 points, the Trojans flexed their depth on a rare off game for Watkins, who was held to a season-low nine points. Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 11 Mar. 2024 Bock says the shift is partly due to mass layoffs; employers are more able to flex their muscles in a tighter labor market. Lauren Goode, WIRED, 22 Feb. 2024 But Grande still flexes her chameleonic vocal abilities throughout the tracklist. Melissa Ruggieri, USA TODAY, 8 Mar. 2024
Noun
Is there a bigger flex on an Awards season red carpet than wearing a look straight off the runway? José Criales-Unzueta, Vogue, 11 Mar. 2024 Below are the best watch flexes from this year’s SAG Awards. Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 26 Feb. 2024 Material that flexes to ease the removal of the pot is ideal. Kenneth Setzer, Miami Herald, 30 Jan. 2024 In the Cascade Mountains, on the West Coast of the United States, a cougar flexes its tail. Natasha Frost, New York Times, 10 Dec. 2023 Rocking an orange bucket hat, red jersey and jeans, Ocean flexes, bops his head and sways side-to-side in the new clip, clearly vibing out to the chill song, whose dreamy lyrics are hard to make out. Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 8 Dec. 2023 This would be a considerable flex of Samsung’s AI capabilities and an easy-to-understand use case that consumers can relate to. Ewan Spence, Forbes, 13 Nov. 2023 No less effective for artistic expression, just shorter-lasting than the big guns, shaving sprays and stickers were easy street art flexes. Jonathan Rowe, SPIN, 31 Oct. 2023 But for the most part, before the development of modern mechanical refrigeration in the 19th century, a steady supply of ice out of season could be obtained only by flexes of power. Ligaya Mishan Esther Choi, New York Times, 22 Aug. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'flex.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Verb

borrowed from Latin flexus, past participle of flectere "to cause to go in a different direction, bend, curve," of uncertain origin

Noun (1)

derivative of flex entry 1

Noun (2)

short for flexible cord

First Known Use

Verb

circa 1521, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Noun (1)

circa 1934, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

1905, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of flex was circa 1521

Dictionary Entries Near flex

Cite this Entry

“Flex.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/flex. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

flex

verb
ˈfleks
1
: to bend especially over and over
2
a
: to move muscles so as to cause flexion of
b
: to move or tense (a muscle) by contraction

Medical Definition

flex

transitive verb
1
: to bend especially repeatedly
2
a
: to move muscles so as to cause flexion of (a joint)
stretching and flexing his knees
b
: to move or tense (a muscle or muscles) by contraction
flexed their biceps

More from Merriam-Webster on flex

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