FLIP | English meaning - Cambridge Dictionary
1. If you flip something, you turn it over quickly one or more times, and if…
dictionary.cambridge.orgHere are the latest general notes on the term “flip” and how it’s used today.
- Core meaning: Flip most commonly means to turn over or rotate something quickly, like flipping a coin or flipping a pancake. It can also mean a quick change of position or orientation, such as flipping a switch or flipping a sign from one side to another.[1][2][4]
- Extended usages: In finance and trading, “flip” often describes quickly changing a position (long to short or vice versa), or flipping ownership in early-stage investments or IPOs for short-term gains. In informal American English, “flip” can also refer to persuading someone to testify against another or changing political allegiance in a given district.[3]
- Other senses: The word appears in phrases like “flip side,” “flip out” (lose control or become very excited), and “flip” as a noun meaning a quick, light motion or a small change in direction.[4][7]
- Dictionaries and usage notes: Major dictionaries define flip with senses around physical flipping (turning over, tossing), turning into something else (changing sides or orientation), and figurative uses (changing positions or attitudes).[2][7][1]
- News coverage: “Flip” shows up in finance/trading contexts and in political shorthand about districts likely to flip party control, reflecting its use as a rapid, decisive action or change.[5][3]
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