flippant: M-W's Word of the Day

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The Word of the Day for November 13 is:

flippant \FLIP-unt\ adjective
: lacking proper respect or seriousness

Example sentence:
The young attorney reddened when she realized the reply she'd just given the frowning judge bordered on flippant.

Did you know?
"Flippant" was probably created from the verb "flip," which in turn likely originated as an imitation of the sound of something flipping. Among early senses of the adjective were "nimble" and "limber." One could be flippant not only on one's feet, but also in speech; that is, someone "flippant" might have a capacity for easy, flowing speech. But people who speak freely and easily can sometimes seem too talkative, even impertinent, and from the beginning "flippant" referred to such overly glib speech as well. By the end of the 18th century, the flip-flop was complete -- the positive sense of "flippant" had slipped from use, and the "disrespectful" sense had taken over.

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