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flush 1 (flŭsh) Share: Tweet v. flushed, flush·ing, flush·es v.intr. 1. To turn red, as from fever, embarrassment, or strong emotion; blush. 2. To glow, especially with a reddish color: The sky flushed pink at dawn. 3. To flow suddenly and abundantly, as from containment; flood. 4. To be emptied or cleaned by a rapid flow of water, as a toilet. v.tr. 1. To cause to redden or glow. 2. To excite or elate: The team was flushed with the success of victory. 3. a. To clean, rinse, or empty with a rapid flow of a liquid, especially water: flush a toilet; flush a wound with iodine. b. To drive away with a rapid flow of a liquid: flush debris from a pipe. c. To remove or eliminate: "The weakness in demand and productivity will at least ... flush out some of the inflation premium that has been built into interest rates" (Fortune). n. 1. a. A flooding flow or rush, as of water. b. The act of cleaning or rinsing by or as if by flushing. 2. A blush or glow: "here and there a flush of red on the lip of a little cloud" (Willa Cather). 3. a. A reddening of the skin, as with fever, emotion, or exertion. b. A brief sensation of heat over all or part of the body. 4. A rush of strong feeling: a flush of pride. 5. A state of great vigor or development. See Synonyms at bloom1. adj. flush·er, flush·est 1. Having a healthy reddish color; flushed. 2. a. Having an abundant supply of something, especially money: a business that is flush with profits; a crowd that was flush with excitement. b. Marked by abundance; plentiful: flush times resulting from the oil boom. 3. a. Having surfaces in the same plane; even. b. Arranged with adjacent sides, surfaces, or edges close together: a sofa flush against the wall. See Synonyms at level. c. Printing Aligned evenly with a margin, as along the left or right edge of a typeset page; not indented. 4. Direct, straightforward, or solid: knocked out by a flush blow to the jaw. 5. Designed to be emptied or cleaned by flushing: a flush toilet. adv. 1. So as to be even, in one plane, or aligned with a margin. 2. Squarely or solidly: The ball hit him flush on the face. [Probably from FLUSH3, to dart out.] flusher n. flushness n.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.

flush 2 (flŭsh) Share: Tweet n. Games A hand in which all the cards are of the same suit but not in numerical sequence, ranked above a straight and below a full house in poker. [French flux, flus, from Old French flux, from Latin flūxus, flux; see FLUX.]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.

flush 3 (flŭsh) Share: Tweet v. flushed, flush·ing, flush·es v.tr. 1. To frighten (a game bird, for example) from cover. 2. To drive or force into the open: The police fired tear gas to flush out the terrorists. v.intr. To dart out or fly from cover. n. A bird or flock of birds that has been frightened from cover. [Middle English flusshen.]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.

# Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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