flake

Word family

flake1 /fleɪk/ noun [countableC]

1 PIECEa small thin piece that breaks away easily from something else 小薄片

flake of

flakes of snow

雪花

chocolate flakes

巧克力薄片

2. American EnglishAmE informalCRAZY someone who seems strange or who often forgets things 古怪的人；丢三落四的人 SYN space cadet

Examples from the Corpus

flake• flakes of chocolate on a cake• He's such a flake, but he's fun to work with.• Her sunburnt skin was beginning to peel off in big flakes.• His corn flakes had probably gone soggy at breakfast too.• Feed a diet of insects, worms, plant matter, flake food and freeze dried food.• Workers feed them daily a mix of flakes, worms, grasshoppers and freeze-dried shrimp.• Topside, the snow softened the air and a cold wind spits flakes through an open window on the bridge.• She brushed the flakes of dandruff from her shoulder.• Nathan peered through the thick flakes at the wagon that serviced the plane at every stop.• The white chair looks soluble, as if it might crumble, collapsing into a pile of infinitesimal white flakes.• Large white flakes of snow fell upon the cold ground.• Penelope turned to see the white flakes emptying from the sky.• It was noodles flavoured with flakes of dried tuna from Miyako.

flake2 verb

1 (also flake off) [intransitiveI]BREAK to break off in small thin pieces 剝落

The paint is beginning to flake off.

油漆開始剝落了。

Use a moisturising cream to stop your skin flaking.

塗點潤膚霜防止皮膚脫屑。

2 [intransitiveI, transitiveT]BREAK to break fish or another food into small thin pieces, or to break in this way （使）碎裂成小薄片

Poach the fish until it flakes easily.

把魚炖到一碰就碎爲止。

Remove the skin and flake the flesh.

去皮後把肉切成小薄片。

3 flake out phrasal verbphr v informal

a) SLEEP British EnglishBrE to fall asleep because you are extremely tired （累得）睡着

Phil’s flaked out on the sofa.

菲爾累得在沙發上睡着了。

b) American EnglishAmE to do something strange, or to not do what you said you would do 行爲古怪；食言

Kathy said she’d help but she flaked out on us.

凱茜說過會幫忙的，但她對我們食言了。

Examples from the Corpus

flake on• He'd flaked out on my bed.

Examples from the Corpus

flake• Cranston led Athelstan into the Great Hall, pointing out the painted walls though some of the frescoes were beginning to flake.• The gold covering may be flaking away, exposing the white plaster, or gesso, underneath.• Chunks of blue-green stuff flaked off and scattered over the floor.• Paint was flaking off the doors and window frames.• If it flakes or crumbles, add a little more water.• He'd flaked out on my bed.• Weeds and flaking paint obscure nuggets of history on many of the distinctive black-and-silver roadside markers.

Flaken (also Cadbury's Flake) trademark

n1.a type of chocolate bar made by the Cadbury company which breaks into flakes (=small thin pieces) when you bite it

Origin flake1

(1300-1400) From a Scandinavian language; related to Norwegian flak “disk”

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Corpus