flog

English

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /flɒɡ/
• Rhymes: -ɒɡ
• (US) IPA^(key): /flɑɡ/

• Audio (AU)

  (file)

Etymology 1

From Middle English *floggen (suggested by flogge (“hammer, sledge”), from Old English *floggian, a stem variant of Proto-Germanic *flukkōną (“to beat”), itself a secondary zero-grade iterative with unetymological -u-, derived from *flōkaną. The original zero-grade iterative *flakkōną had been misinterpreted as an o-grade. See flack (“to beat”), also as a dialectal noun "a blow, slap". Cognate with Scots flog (“a blow, stripe, flogging”, noun), Scots flog (“thin strip of wood”), Norwegian flak (“a piece torn off, strip”).

Alternatively, a back-formation from flogger, from Low German flogger (“a flail”).

Verb

flog (third-person singular simple present flogs, present participle flogging, simple past and past participle flogged)

1. (transitive) To whip or scourge as punishment.
2. (transitive) To use something to extreme; to abuse.
   • 2002 October 30, Chris Wardrop, “VL idles rough when warm...”, in aus.cars‎ (Usenet):

     I did seven laps of Fyshwick with the mechanic today. I was turning lots of heads on the last few, people must of thought I was nuts, flogging the car then stopping, then driving slow then flogging it again.

3. (transitive, UK, slang) To sell.
   • 2001 January 26, Paul Edwards, “Optus $5/month 5110, T10 and 2288 only 4 days”, in aus.comms.mobile‎ (Usenet):

     And then there's my part time job at Telstra Bigpond flogging their cable network for just $67.55/month long term cost, a BARGAIN, and the other part time job flogging Foxtel at something like $50/month.

   • 2007, Dave Lee (jazz musician), Nothing Rhymes with Silver 2‎, page 78:

     Flanders was able to flog his piece of land, for which he had originally paid £4,000, to one of the largest gold-mining corporations for something like a couple of million smackers.

4. (transitive, Australia, New Zealand) To steal something.
5. (transitive, Australia, New Zealand) To defeat easily or convincingly.
   • 1999 August 16, Mr Ripper, “Nothing to Crow About”, in rec.sport.football.australian‎ (Usenet):

     The Swannies got on a real roll over rounds 16/17 & 18 of 1987. In consecutive SCG matches, they flogged the Eags 30.21 to 10.11, followed that with a 36.20 to 11.7 demolition of the Dons and finally a 31.12 to 15.17 thrashing of Richmond.

   • 2001 June 9, Cas., “Eng v Aus 1977”, in aus.sport.cricket‎ (Usenet):

     Anyone with cable watch this on ESPN "History of Cricket" last night? Australia got flogged by an innings in the fourth test.

   • 2004 June 5, Greg Vincent }:c{, “POLISER- Roosters v Bulldogs”, in aus.sport.rugby-league‎ (Usenet):

     It'll make the Raiders look good. Getting flogged by a team that got flogged by a team that got flogged by the Bulldogs.

6. (transitive, Australia, agriculture) To overexploit (land), as by overgrazing, overstocking, etc.
   • 2007 February 6, “Suppliers the losers in Coles-Woolworths war”, in The Age:

     The environment is paying dearly as producers flog their land. Sustainable agriculture needs a new generation of energised science and technology-trained farmers

7. (theater) To beat away charcoal dust etc. using a flogger.

Synonyms

• (to whip or scourge): Thesaurus:whip

Derived terms

Translations

Noun

flog (plural flogs)

1. (Australia, informal, derogatory) A contemptible, often arrogant person; a wanker.
   • 2019 June 15, Goya Dmytryshchak, “AFL fan outrage at 'behaviourial awareness officers'”, in The Age‎:

     It follows the ejection of a supporter who allegedly ran towards umpire Mathew Nicholls while calling him a "bald-headed flog" at half-time of the Carlton-Brisbane Lions match last Saturday.

See also

• flail
• flay
• vapulate

Etymology 2

Blend of fake +‎ blog

Noun

flog (plural flogs)

1. (Internet slang) A weblog designed to look authentic, but actually developed as part of a commercial marketing strategy to promote some product or service.
   • 2008, Lucas Conley, OBD: Obsessive Branding Disorder:

     Though a handful of viral videos and flogs have captured significant interest, the vast majority hardly register with consumers.

   • 2009, Nico Carpentier, Benjamin De Cleen, Participation and Media Production: Critical Reflections on Content Creation, page 33:

     An element more problematic […] in the move of corporate communications and practices online is the sometimes masked nature of such initiatives, for example through blogola and flogs.

   • 2010, Beata Klimkiewicz, Media Freedom and Pluralism:

     […] hidden advertising and flogs (the use of “personal blogs” for unfair commercial and political purposes), […]

Synonyms

• spamblog
• splog

References

Anagrams

• GLOF, golf

German

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /floːk/

• Audio (Austria)

  (file)

Verb

flog

1. past of fliegen

Icelandic

Etymology

Doublet (showing a-mutation) of flug (“flight; cliff”), from Old Norse flog, flug (“flight; cliff; an illness of the head”), from Proto-Germanic *flugą.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈflɔːɣ/
• Rhymes: -ɔːɣ

Noun

flog n (genitive singular flogs, nominative plural flog)

1. (obsolete, poetic) flight (the act of flying)
2. seizure (sudden attack [of an illness], convulsion, e.g. an epileptic seizure)
3. seizure (sudden onset of pain)

Declension

Related terms

• flogaveiki

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology

From Old Norse flog.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /floːɡ/

Noun

flog n (definite singular floget, indefinite plural flog, definite plural floga)

1. a flight (the act of flying)
2. a steep drop, near vertical cliff

References

• “flog” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Volapük

Noun

flog (nominative plural flogs)

1. flake

Declension

Welsh

Pronunciation

• • IPA^(key): /vlɔɡ/

Noun

flog

1. Soft mutation of blog.

Mutation