From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishflingfling1 /flɪŋ/ ●●○ verb (past tense and past participle flung /flʌŋ/) [transitive always + adverb/preposition] 1 throw somethingTHROW to throw something somewhere using a lot of forcefling something into something He flung the box into the river. People cheered and flung their hats into the air.► see thesaurus at throw2 move something to throw or move something roughly and carelessly He flung his coat over the back of a chair. She flung back the covers and got up. He flung the books aside angrily.3 push somebody to push someone roughly, especially so that they fall to the ground SYN throw He grabbed her arm and flung her to the ground.4 move your bodyTHROW to move yourself or part of your body quickly, using a lot of force SYN throw He flung himself down on the bed. She flung her arms round Louise.5 say something to say something to someone in an angry way SYN throwfling something at somebody People were flinging all sorts of accusations at her. His own words were flung back at him. 6 → fling something open7 → fling somebody in/into prison/jail8 → fling yourself into something9 → fling yourself at somebody → fling something ↔ off → fling somebody/something ↔ out→ See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
fling• Shoes and socks lay where they had been flung.• But I am old-fashioned enough to dislike hearing it flung about in railway carriages by mixed school parties.• Backed by Suzi, who did most of the energetic stuff, Ingrid strutted and flounced and flung her hair about.• She flung herself into her room and began to pack frantically, wanting to cry with rage and shame.• We flung him the safety rope.• She closed her eyes in ecstasy as Jamie flung himself on her, accusing her of being a flirt.• He pulled the knife from her hand and flung it out of the window.• It flings its fine hairs in the face of the assailant, in a dense cloud.• The left hand was flung out, the right lay closer to the body.• When he gave her the tickets she ripped them up and flung them at him.• Now only the sea thunders rhythmically through the grotto, flinging up fans of salty spray.flung ... arms• With a sob, Theda flung her arms about his neck and buried her face in his shoulder.• When she came in, she flung her arms about me and kissed me as if we were sisters.• Kate flung her arms around him and wept for joy.• He flung his arms around me and pushed his beard in my face.• Everett flung both arms out briefly to free his shirt from his damp skin.• Gallagher flung up his arms, protecting his eyes.• I flung my arms round my astonished aunt's nick and burst into tears on her shoulder.• Thérèse flung her arms wide and broke into sobs.flingfling2 noun [countable usually singular] 1 RELATIONSHIPa short and not very serious sexual relationship They had a brief fling a few years ago.2 ENJOY/LIKE DOING somethinga short period of time during which you enjoy yourself without worrying about anything He sees this as his final fling before he retires.Examples from the Corpus
fling• Prosecutors say the suspects plotted the killing after Zamora found out that Graham had had a fling with Jones.• They had a fling years ago.• Yes, I did go out with him, but it was just a fling.• Since retiring, he had a brief fling coaching the Lakers at the end of the 1993-94 season.• She wasn't interested in anything more than a casual fling.• Only a quarter said they did it for love and just over one in six admitted it was a drunken fling.• She thought her fling with another man would stay secret because she had been sterilised.• She left her husband after she learned about his fling with an exotic dancer.• Last fling for the analogue gramophone?• There were flings, of course, but Nicholas was inept at all forms of promiscuity except gossip.• The ex-Guards officer, who had a five-year fling with Di, wants thousands of pounds.had ... brief fling• Since retiring, he had a brief fling coaching the Lakers at the end of the 1993-94 season.final fling• Or that, getting on, she was looking for adventure, a final fling?• Women of that age, she'd read somewhere, often made a push for one final fling.• Phoebe's final fling with overpowering emotion.Origin fling1 (1200-1300) From a Scandinavian language 