FLYING

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does flying mean? 

• FLYING (noun)
  The noun FLYING has 1 sense:

1. an instance of traveling by air

  Familiarity information: FLYING used as a noun is very rare.

• FLYING (adjective)
  The adjective FLYING has 2 senses:

1. moving swiftly

2. hurried and brief

  Familiarity information: FLYING used as an adjective is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• FLYING (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

An instance of traveling by air

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

flight; flying

Context example:

flying was still an exciting adventure for him

Hypernyms ("flying" is a kind of...):

air; air travel; aviation (travel via aircraft)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "flying"):

acrobatics; aerobatics; stunt flying; stunting (the performance of stunts while in flight in an aircraft)

blind flying; blind landing (using only instruments for flying an aircraft because you cannot see through clouds or mists etc.)

ballooning (flying in a balloon)

fly-by; flyover; flypast (a flight at a low altitude (usually of military aircraft) over spectators on the ground)

glide; gliding; sailing; sailplaning; soaring (the activity of flying a glider)

maiden flight (the first flight of its kind)

overflight (a flight by an aircraft over a particular area (especially over an area in foreign territory))

pass (a flight or run by an aircraft over a target)

solo (a flight in which the aircraft pilot is unaccompanied)

sortie ((military) an operational flight by a single aircraft (as in a military operation))

low level flight; terrain flight (flight at very low altitudes)

Derivation:

fly (transport by aeroplane)

fly (travel in an airplane)

fly (travel over (an area of land or sea) in an aircraft)

fly (travel through the air; be airborne)

fly (operate an airplane)

• FLYING (adjective)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Moving swiftly

Synonyms:

fast-flying; flying

Context example:

played the difficult passage with flying fingers

Similar:

moving (in motion)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Hurried and brief

Synonyms:

fast; flying; quick

Context example:

a fast visit

Similar:

hurried (moving rapidly or performed quickly or in great haste)

 Context examples 

This it did, and was flying down-stream in a current as swift as a mill-race, when Hans checked it with the rope and checked too suddenly.

(The Call of the Wild, by Jack London)

"That's all right," said the Stork, who was flying along beside them.

(The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum)

The team used a modern version of a 150-year-old German photography technique called Schlieren imaging to show shock waves streaming from jets flying at supersonic speeds.

(Seeing Shock Waves, EARTH OBSERVATORY)

Most of this flying occurs at the peak of the Antarctic summer when the lake surfaces in the valleys experience a seasonal melt.

(Antarctic lakes are a repository for ancient soot, NSF)

Other common phobias involve tunnels, highway driving, water, flying, animals and blood.

(Phobias, NIH: National Institute of Mental Health)

What are my agony and indignation next day, when I hear a flying rumour that the Misses Nettingall have stood Miss Shepherd in the stocks for turning in her toes!

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

Five minutes had not passed before we were flying in a hansom down Baker Street.

(His Last Bow, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Peeping into the open door, they saw a sight which sent them flying, with white faces, into the village.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

He had asked for two years; time was flying, and he was achieving nothing.

(Martin Eden, by Jack London)

How about flying to Paris? Or in Italy, Venice, Sienna, or Rome? In the US, Carmel-by-the-Sea or Santa Barbara? In Spain, Seville, or in Canada, Victoria or Quebec City?

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)