fly
verb /flaɪ/
/flaɪ/
In sense 15 flied /flaɪd/
/flaɪd/
is used for the past tense and past participle.Verb Forms
Idioms Phrasal Verbs| present simple I / you / we / they fly | /flaɪ/ /flaɪ/ |
| he / she / it flies | /flaɪz/ /flaɪz/ |
| past simple flew | /fluː/ /fluː/ |
| past participle flown | /fləʊn/ /fləʊn/ |
| -ing form flying | /ˈflaɪɪŋ/ /ˈflaɪɪŋ/ |
- [intransitive] to move through the air, using wings
- Penguins can't fly.
- + adv./prep. A stork flew slowly past.
- A wasp had flown in through the window.
- Geese fly south in the fall.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb- high
- low
- fast
- …
- above
- over
- [intransitive] (of an aircraft or a spacecraft) to move through air or space
- fly (from A) (to B) They were on a plane flying from London to New York.
- fly (to B) (from A) Lufthansa fly to La Paz from Frankfurt.
- + adv./prep. Enemy planes fly overhead.
- to fly at the speed of sound
- The aircraft was declared fully functional and fit to fly.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb- high
- low
- fast
- …
- above
- over
- [intransitive] to travel in an aircraft or a spacecraft
- Is this the first time that you've flown?
- fly (from A) (to B) I'm flying to Hong Kong tomorrow.
- fly + adv./prep. I was flying home to visit my family.
- + noun I always fly business class.
- We're flying KLM.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb- high
- low
- fast
- …
- above
- over
- [transitive, intransitive] to control an aircraft, etc. in the air
- He's learning to fly.
- fly something a pilot trained to fly large passenger planes
- children flying kites
Extra ExamplesTopics Transport by aira1- She's trained to fly passenger planes, not military jets.
- You'll have to fly the helicopter over some dangerous territory.
- [transitive] + adv./prep. to transport goods or passengers in a plane
- The stranded tourists were finally flown home.
- He had flowers specially flown in for the ceremony.
- Orders were given to fly the prisoners to the US.
- [transitive] fly something to move through the air for a particular distance; to travel over an ocean or area of land in an aircraft
- Some birds fly huge distances when they migrate.
- Who was the first person to fly the Atlantic?
- Only four airlines are currently allowed to fly transatlantic routes from Heathrow.
- [intransitive] (+ adv./prep.) to go or move quickly
- The train was flying along.
- She gasped and her hand flew to her mouth.
- It's late—I must fly.
- [intransitive] to move suddenly and with force
- (+ adv./prep.) A large stone came flying in through the window.
- Several people were hit by flying glass.
- + adj. David gave the door a kick and it flew open.
- [intransitive] to seem to pass very quickly
- Doesn't time fly?
- fly by/past Summer has just flown by.
- [intransitive, transitive] if a flag flies, or if you fly it, it is displayed, for example on a pole (= a long piece of wood or metal)
- Flags were flying at half mast on all public buildings.
- fly something to fly the Stars and Stripes
- [intransitive] to move around freely
- hair flying in the wind
- [intransitive] to be talked about by many people
- [transitive, intransitive] fly (something) (formal) to escape from somebody/something
- Both suspects have flown the country.
- [intransitive] (especially North American English) to be successful
- It remains to be seen whether his project will fly.
- (flies, flying, flied, flied)[intransitive, transitive] fly (something) to hit a ball high into the air
of bird/insect
aircraft/spacecraft
move quickly/suddenly
of time
flag
move freely
of stories/rumours
escape
of plan
in baseball
Word Originverb Old English flēogan, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch vliegen and German fliegen, also to fly, the insect.
Idioms
as the crow flies
- in a straight line
- The villages are no more than a mile apart as the crow flies.
the bird has flown
- the wanted person has escaped
(fly) by the seat of your pants
- (informal) to act without careful thought and without a plan that you have made in advance, hoping that you will be lucky and be successful synonym wing it
fly the coop
- (informal, especially North American English) to escape from a place
fly/show/wave the flag
- to show your support for your country, an organization or an idea to encourage or persuade others to do the same
fly high
- to be successful
- British cinema has been flying high recently, winning several coveted awards.
fly in the face of something
- to oppose or be the opposite of something that is usual or expected
- Such a proposal is flying in the face of common sense.
fly into a rage, temper, etc.
- to become suddenly very angryTopics Feelingsc2
fly a kite
- (informal) to test out public opinion on a subject
- The company is flying a kite to see if this plan provokes any interest.
fly the nest
- (of a young bird) to become able to fly and leave its nest
- (informal) (of somebody’s child) to leave home and live somewhere else
- Her children have flown the nest.
fly/go off at a tangent (British English)
(North American English go off on a tangent)
- (informal) to suddenly start saying or doing something that does not seem to be connected to what has gone before
- He never sticks to the point but keeps going off at a tangent.
- Laura’s mind went off at a tangent.
fly off the handle
- (informal) to suddenly become very angry
- He seems to fly off the handle about the slightest thing these days.
fly/go out (of) the window
- (informal) to stop existing; to disappear completely
- As soon as the kids arrived, order went out of the window.
go flying
- (informal) to fall, especially as a result of not seeing something under your feet
- Someone's going to go flying if you don't pick up these toys.
go fly a/your kite
- (North American English, informal) used to tell somebody to go away and stop annoying you or interfering
keep the flag flying
- to represent your country or organization
- Our exporters keep the flag flying at international trade exhibitions.
let fly (at somebody/something) (with something)
- to attack somebody by hitting them or speaking angrily to them
- He let fly at me with his fist.
- She let fly with a stream of abuse.
pigs might fly (British English)
(North American English when pigs fly)
- (ironic, saying) used to show that you do not believe something will ever happen
- ‘With a bit of luck, we'll be finished by the end of the year.’ ‘Yes, and pigs might fly!’
time flies
- (saying) time seems to pass very quickly
- How time flies! I've got to go now.
- Time has flown since the holiday began.
