Flow Meaning
/ˈfləʊ̯/Definition, CEFR level B1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounMovement in people or things characterized with a continuous motion, involving either a non solid mass or a multitude.
nounThe movement of a real or figurative fluid.
Sentence Examples
There is a constant flow of traffic on this road.
Do something about the flow of blood from the wound.
She lost control and the tears began to flow.
CEFR Practice Quiz
The river continues to ____ downstream towards the ocean, carrying water and small debris with it.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The river's ____ was slow and steady as it meandered through the peaceful and green valley.
Word Origin & History
From Middle English flowe, from the verb (see below). The psychology sense “state of focus” was coined by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi in 1975.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Mr. Cooke at once began a tirade against the residents of Asquith for permitting a sandy and generally disgraceful condition of the roads. So roundly did he vituperate the inn management in particular, and with such a loud flow of words, that I trembled lest he should be heard on the veranda."
— 1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter IV, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC, page 48:
"The point about flow is that it is enjoyable. As research has shown "the more often athletes experienced flow, the happier they were." But the second is that entering flow actually improves performance."
— 2014 January 14, Alex Lockwood, “How to achieve a state of flow when running”, in The Guardian:
"Now shawty said she feelin' my style, she feelin' my flow […] / My flow, my show brought me the dough / That bought me all my fancy things"
— 2003, “In da Club”, in Get Rich or Die Tryin', performed by 50 Cent:
"I'm setting up event tracking for a pretty standard, multi-step signup flow, and I'm wondering [...]"
— 2015, Dan, “Best practices for tracking progress through a sign up flow”, in snowplow-user mailing list:
"Wrex: I need to get my blood flowing. Find me something to kill!"
— 2008, BioWare, Mass Effect (Science Fiction), Redwood City: Electronic Arts, →ISBN, →OCLC, PC:
Explore More B1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The river continues to ____ downstream towards the ocean, carrying water and small debris with it.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The river's ____ was slow and steady as it meandered through the peaceful and green valley.