flakey

Meanings

1. 1adjectivecomparableinformal

   Not dependable, especially about turning up, keeping promises or finishing what you start.

   Grammar: Describes a person or arrangement: a flakey friend. The usual spelling is flaky.

   Patterns

   • a flakey friend
   • flakey about something

   My flakey roommate forgot to pay the rent again.

   I stopped inviting him because he was too flakey to show up.

   She is lovely but a bit flakey when it comes to answering messages.

2. 2adjectivecomparable

   Tending to come off or separate in thin, small pieces.

   Grammar: Describes a surface or food: flakey pastry.

   Patterns

   • flakey skin
   • flakey pastry

   The flakey crust of the pie melted in my mouth.

   Dry winter air left my skin flakey and tight.

   The old paint was so flakey that it came off on my sleeve.

Word forms

Common combinations

flakey friend

Nobody wants a flakey friend on moving day.

flakey pastry

The bakery is known for its flakey pastry.

flakey skin

A good lotion helps with flakey skin.

flakey connection

A flakey connection kept cutting off the video call.

a bit flakey

He is a bit flakey about deadlines.

Synonyms and how they differ

unreliable

Unreliable is the neutral, general word, while flakey is casual and suggests breaking plans for no good reason.

scatterbrained

Scatterbrained stresses forgetfulness and disorganization rather than backing out of plans.

flighty

Flighty suggests someone who changes interests or commitments quickly, often in a light, restless way.

Opposites

Word family

flake noun

a small thin piece, or an unreliable person

flakiness noun

the quality of being unreliable or coming off in flakes

flake verb

to come off in small thin pieces

flaky adjective

the more common spelling of flakey

Commonly confused: flakey or flaky?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “flakey”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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