Etymology From Middle English flight, from Old English flyht (“flight”), from Proto-West Germanic *fluhti (“flight”), derived from *fleuganą (“to fly”), from Proto-Indo-European *plewk- (“to fly”), enlargement of *plew- (“flow”). Analyzable as fly + -t (variant of -th). Cognate with West Frisian flecht (“flight”), Dutch vlucht (“flight”), German Flucht (“flight”) (etymology 2).
Collective A collective term for doves or swallows.
a flight of swallows
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A trip made by an aircraft, particularly one between two cities or countries, which is often planned or reserved in advance.
The flight to Paris leaves at 7 o'clock tonight.
Where is the departure gate for flight 747? / Go straight down and to the right.
1 more example
He is taking the 5 o' clock flight to London in the morning.
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A series of stairs between landings.
Limerick terminus has changed but little since its opening, and travellers still ascend the same flight of steps from the forecourt to enter the handsome two-storey stone building, which contains the offices and a recently-modernised refreshment room.1958 May 23, W. J. South and L. Hyland, “Limerick as a Railway Centre”, in Railway Magazine, page 297:
She crept up the stairs [...] On she went, across the landing, from which sprang the tall window, and up the next flight until she reached the top.1967, Barbara Sleigh, Jessamy, Sevenoaks, Kent: Bloomsbury, published 1993, →ISBN, page 84:
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A group of canal locks with a short distance between them
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A floor which is reached by stairs or escalators.
How many flights is it up?
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The feathers on an arrow or dart used to help it follow an even path.
Baſſ. In my ſchoole dayes, when I had loſt one ſhaft / I ſhot his fellow of the ſelfeſame flight / The ſelfeſame way, with more aduiſed watch / To finde the other forth, and by aduenturing both, / I oft found both. I vrge this child-hoode proofe, […]c. 1596–1598 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene i], page 164:
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A paper airplane.
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Ball games, Cricket, Games, Hobbies, Lifestyle, Sports The movement of a spinning ball through the air, with its speed, trajectory and drift.
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The ballistic trajectory of an arrow or other projectile.
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An aerodynamic surface designed to guide such a projectile's trajectory.
Several sample glasses of a specific wine varietal or other beverage. The pours are smaller than a full glass and the flight will generally include three to five different samples.
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Broadly A comparable sample of beers or other drinks.
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Engineering, Natural sciences, Physical sciences The shaped material forming the thread of a screw.
After the first eight-week flight of advertising, the tracking research showed that consumers' predisposition to use Citi as a financial services provider jumped 50 percent.2006, Pat Fallon, Fred Senn, Juicing the Orange, page 34:
Etymology From Middle English flight, from Old English flyht (“flight”), from Proto-West Germanic *fluhti (“flight”), derived from *fleuganą (“to fly”), from Proto-Indo-European *plewk- (“to fly”), enlargement of *plew- (“flow”). Analyzable as fly + -t (variant of -th). Cognate with West Frisian flecht (“flight”), Dutch vlucht (“flight”), German Flucht (“flight”) (etymology 2).
Etymology From Middle English flight, from Old English flyht (“flight”), from Proto-West Germanic *fluhti (“flight”), derived from *fleuganą (“to fly”), from Proto-Indo-European *plewk- (“to fly”), enlargement of *plew- (“flow”). Analyzable as fly + -t (variant of -th). Cognate with West Frisian flecht (“flight”), Dutch vlucht (“flight”), German Flucht (“flight”) (etymology 2).
1
Ball games, Cricket, Games, Hobbies, Lifestyle, SportsOf a spin bowler To throw the ball in such a way that it has more airtime and more spin than usual.
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Hobbies, Lifestyle, SportsBroadly To throw or kick something so as to send it flying with more loft or airtime than usual.
Riyad Mahrez flighted the free-kick that followed to the far post and Morgan, with not much finesse but plenty of desire, bundled the ball over the line. Cue pandemonium in the stands.2017 March 14, Stuart James, “Leicester stun Sevilla to reach last eight after Kasper Schmeichel save”, in the Guardian:
flight
noun
Etymology From Middle English, from Old English flyht, from Proto-West Germanic *fluhti, derived from *fleuhaną (“to flee”). Analyzable as flee + -t (variant of -th). Cognate with Dutch vlucht, German Flucht (etymology 1).
1
The act of fleeing.
take flight
the flight of a refugee
2 more examples
Awake! for Morning in the Bowl of Night, Has flung the Stone that puts the Stars to Flight: And Lo! the Hunter of the East has caught The Sultán's Turret in a Noose of light.1859, Edward Fitzgerald, The Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám: The Astronomer-Poet of Persia, page 1:
But the sight of her eyes was not a thing to forget. John Dodds said they were the een of a deer with the Devil ahint them; and indeed, they would so appal an onlooker that a sudden unreasoning terror came into his heart, while his feet would impel him to flight.1902, John Buchan, The Outgoing of the Tide: