flying start |
a quick start or beginning, as in a race, project, or the like. [2 definitions] |
fly in the face of |
to defy (authority, convention, or the like). |
flyleaf |
the blank sheet or leaf in the front or back of a book. |
fly off the handle |
to become suddenly enraged. |
flypaper |
paper with a sticky, sometimes poisonous coating, often hung in narrow strips from the ceiling, to catch and kill flies. |
flyspeck |
a small spot or speck made by a fly's excrement. [3 definitions] |
fly swatter |
a device for killing insects, particularly flies, consisting of a flat rectangular mesh attached to a long handle. |
fly the coop |
(informal) to escape from or as if from confinement. |
flytrap |
a plant that traps insects, such as the Venus flytrap. |
flyway |
a specific air route taken regularly by birds on their semiannual migrations to and from their breeding grounds. |
flyweight |
a boxer who weighs 112 pounds or less and thus qualifies to compete in the lightest official weight class. |
flywheel |
a heavy-rimmed wheel that rotates on a shaft and with its momentum serves to minimize variation in the speed of machinery connected to the shaft. |
FM |
a system of varying a radio signal's frequency so as to impose the signal on a carrier wave; frequency modulation. [2 definitions] |
Fm |
symbol of the chemical element fermium. |
FNMA |
abbreviation of "Federal National Mortgage Association;" Fannie Mae. |
f-number |
the relative aperture of a camera lens, representing the light it will transmit, which is obtained by dividing the focal length of the lens by the diameter of the aperture. |
foal |
a young horse, mule, or related animal, esp. under one year old. [2 definitions] |
foam |
a usu. whitish mass of small bubbles that forms on the surface of a liquid after agitation, fermentation, or the like; froth. [6 definitions] |
foamable |
combined form of foam. |
foamless |
combined form of foam. |
foam rubber |
a firm, lightweight spongy rubber, used esp. in upholstered seats and for mattresses. |