What does flake mean?
Flake refers to a small, thin, flat piece that has broken away from a larger whole — a curl of dry skin, a chip of old paint, a crystal of falling snow. It functions both as a noun and as a verb: paint flakes off weathered wood, pastry flakes when cut, and stone can be flaked into tools, a process central to prehistoric craftsmanship. In casual American speech, 'a flake' also describes someone unreliable who cancels plans or fails to follow through, and 'to flake out' means to back out abruptly or drift off to sleep. In Australia, the word takes a culinary turn entirely, naming the shark meat served in fish and chips. Versatile and concrete, flake bridges physical description and human behaviour, which makes it useful in contexts ranging from dermatology and geology to everyday complaints about friends who never show up.
A small, thin, flat piece that has broken or peeled off from a larger mass, such as skin, paint, snow, stone, or food.
"She brushed a flake of dandruff from the collar of her coat."
Often used in compounds such as 'snowflake' and in food names like 'corn flakes'.
To come away, or to cause something to come away, in small thin flat pieces.
"The old varnish began to flake under the scraper."
Frequently appears as 'flake off' or, informally in American English, 'flake out'.
(Informal, chiefly US) A person regarded as unreliable or eccentric, especially one who fails to honour commitments.
"Don't count on him to book the venue — he's a total flake."
Colloquial and mildly derogatory; best avoided in formal writing.
Standard plural; commonly used for granular foods (bran flakes, corn flakes) and for multiple detached pieces.
"Flakes of rust littered the floor beneath the old gate."
In Australia, ordering 'flake' at the fish-and-chip shop gets you shark meat on your plate — a whole country eats it under that name.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of flake
Flake comes from Old Norse, most likely from 'flak', meaning a flying or loose piece, carried into England during the Viking settlements and appearing in Middle English. The Scandinavian connection links it to related words in the modern Nordic languages with much the same sense of a flat layer or slab. Its spelling and form stabilised by the early modern period, and the verb followed naturally from the noun as speakers described surfaces shedding thin layers.
Related word forms
How flake is actually used
The noun and verb senses are neutral and common across registers. The informal sense describing an unreliable person, and the phrasal verb 'flake out', are chiefly American colloquial usage and carry a mildly disapproving connotation. In Australian English, 'flake' also refers to shark meat sold as food, a regional sense unfamiliar to many British and American readers.
Easily confused with flake
A fleck is a tiny spot or speck on a surface, whereas a flake is a thin, flat piece that has detached from something.
Flak refers to criticism or opposition (or historically anti-aircraft fire) and is unrelated in meaning to the thin fragments called flakes, despite the similar spelling.