flicker

«flicker» in Mova's school dictionary: to shine unsteadily, getting brighter and dimmer quickly… — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 1 sentence of Mova's corpora that use it.

part of speech

verb (flicker, flickers, flickered, flickering); noun (a flicker, flickers)

meaning for a pupil

1) To flicker is to shine unsteadily, getting brighter and dimmer quickly, like a candle flame. tree →

2) To flicker is also to move quickly and lightly, like eyelids or a shadow. tree →

3) A flicker is a quick unsteady light or movement, or a small sudden feeling, like a flicker of hope. tree →

sense in the lessons

In stories flickering lights and candles create a spooky or cosy mood; a flicker of a smile shows a hidden feeling. In everyday life a flickering bulb may need changing. Phrases: «a flicker of hope», «flickering candle», «the lights flickered».

examples

• The candle flickered in the draught. tree →
• The lights flickered and went out. tree →
• A flicker of hope crossed her face. tree →
• Shadows flickered on the walls of the cave. tree →
• His eyelids flickered as he woke up. tree →
• The TV screen flickered. tree →
• There was a flicker of a smile on Dad's face. tree →
• All at once in the distance a small light flickered. tree →

note

Regular verb: flickered, flickering. A flickering light can mean a loose wire or a bulb that is failing; tell an adult and don't touch it.

In the corpora

• It is like a moth flying across a distant lighthouse: you cannot see the moth, but the light flickers.

Trees and pragmatics

Every meaning and example of «flicker» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.