flies 1 of 2

present tense third-person singular of fly
1
as in hovers
to move through the air with or as if with outstretched wings the Wright brothers realized mankind's age-old wish to fly

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
3
4
5
6
as in passes
to withstand scrutiny and gain acceptance or approval the familiar "Because I said so!" is a reason that won't fly with most teenagers

Synonyms & Similar Words

flies

2 of 2

noun

plural of fly

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of flies
Verb
Here, a quilt flies over the spacious skies of Utah’s Dead Horse Point State Park (an area threatened by drilling permits approved by the US Bureau of Land Management) bearing Wes Gordon’s Georgia, Ashlynn Park’s Arkansas, and Sergio Hudson’s South Carolina, among others. Alexandra Hildreth, Vogue, 23 June 2026 The Lions are not typically a team that flies counter to recognizing social justice causes. Armando Salguero Outkick, FOXNews.com, 20 June 2026 One boy, who doesn’t appear to have any friends, all of a sudden is stunned when one of the Buzz Lightyear drones flies down to him. Tim Lammers, Forbes.com, 19 June 2026 Today, America's most iconic bird has recovered its population and flies free. Madeline Gunderson, USA Today, 19 June 2026 This new configuration of the H3 rocket, designated the H3-30S, flies without the aid of solid rocket boosters. Stephen Clark, ArsTechnica, 19 June 2026 The missile flies at low altitude, closely following terrain features such as hills, valleys, and coastlines to remain below enemy radar coverage. Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 16 June 2026 An eagle flies throughout the United States and ends up in Kansas in a cool nod to Lawrence. Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 16 June 2026 The American flag flies behind a Wall Street sign near the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City on April 22, 2026. Lee Ying Shan, CNBC, 15 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for flies
Verb
  • The population hovers at just over 200.
    John Lauritsen, CBS News, 18 June 2026
  • Building on a recurring motif of witches, Woods has Emily and Sylvia lift off during a thunderstorm, soaring above the city skyline in a sequence that hovers between dream and fantasy.
    Natalia Winkelman, Variety, 16 June 2026
Verb
  • The highest technology will not be the one that escapes nature but the one that learns how to participate in its deepest creative computation.
    Pravir Malik, Forbes.com, 1 July 2026
  • On clear, dry nights — like those across much of the interior West — that heat escapes very efficiently into space.
    Brandi D. Addison, USA Today, 1 July 2026
Verb
  • Meanwhile, in King’s Landing, Alicent scurries the great halls, desperate to shore up support for her plan to hand Rhaenyra the Red Keep.
    Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 29 June 2026
  • That goes for much here, from the light that scurries away from Benjamín Echazarreta’s muted camera, to the moments of sweetness that punctuate Mariá Portugal’s largely ominous score.
    Jessica Kiang, Variety, 14 May 2026
Verb
  • Dunn, having none of it, stabs Dickie 20 times with a broken liquor bottle–with pants around his ankles, no less–while Alma flees out a window.
    EW Staff, Entertainment Weekly, 25 June 2026
  • With no idea what's going on, Dylan flees the FBC to find that the Hiss — otherworldly crimson monsters from another dimension — have overrun Manhattan.
    George Yang, Space.com, 22 June 2026
Verb
  • The experimentation that innovation requires gradually disappears.
    Tracy Lawrence, Forbes.com, 2 July 2026
  • And the pressure of crafting an opening line disappears, because someone else has already done the introductions from a stage.
    Hanna Wickes, Sacbee.com, 2 July 2026
Verb
  • That's after the state passes its budget, which will determine how much Jersey City will receive.
    CBS News, CBS News, 29 June 2026
  • There’s a southern route that goes through the waters off Oman; a second route, which was used before the war, passes through the middle of the strait; and a third route further north is controlled by Iran.
    Xiaoqian Lin, CNN Money, 29 June 2026
Noun
  • Willis said that in a generation growing up surrounded by screens and algorithms, there's still value in picking up a physical can of paint.
    Kayla Moeller, CBS News, 30 June 2026
  • Currently limited by the DCI-P3 color standard that already covers a significantly wider color range than typical sRGB screens, Apple’s displays still miss out on many of the most vibrant colors visible to the human eye.
    Paul Monckton, Forbes.com, 29 June 2026
Verb
  • This news soon wings its way to Irv Ravitz (Tibor Feldman), the magazine’s publisher, who hires her to be Runway’s features editor.
    Damon Wise, Deadline, 29 Apr. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Flies.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/flies. Accessed 4 Jul. 2026.

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