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Meaning & use

flea flicker

noun·AdvancedsportAmericaninformal

Last updated

UK/ˈfliː ˌflɪkə/
US/ˈfliː ˌflɪkər/

Meanings

  1. nouncountablesportAmerican

    A trick play in American football in which the ball carrier hands off or tosses the ball back to the quarterback, who then throws a long pass.

    Grammar: Countable: they ran a flea flicker.

    Patterns

    • run a flea flicker
    • a flea flicker to someone

    The team ran a flea flicker on third down and scored.

    The coach saved the flea flicker for the last quarter.

    A perfect flea flicker caught the defense off guard.

  2. nouncountablefigurativeinformal

    Any clever deceptive move that fools opponents by seeming to go one way and then doing another.

    Grammar: Figurative; used in business or politics talk.

    Patterns

    • pull a flea flicker

    The company pulled a flea flicker on its rivals with a surprise offer.

    The senator's flea flicker confused the opposition.

    Their late change of plan was a real flea flicker.

Word forms

pluralflea flickers

Common combinations

run a flea flicker
The offense ran a flea flicker in the red zone.
call a flea flicker
The coach called a flea flicker on second down.
flea flicker pass
The flea flicker pass went for forty yards.
pull off a flea flicker
They pulled off a flea flicker against their rivals.
fall for a flea flicker
The safeties fell for the flea flicker.

Synonyms and how they differ

trick play
Trick play is the broad term for any surprising play, while a flea flicker is one specific example.
double reverse
A double reverse changes the direction of a running play twice, while a flea flicker ends in a pass.
fake
A fake is any deception, while a flea flicker is a full planned play.
hook and lateral
A hook and lateral is another trick play with a sideways pass, and is a different move from the flea flicker.

Opposites

straight play

Word family

flicker verb
to flash or move lightly
flea noun
a tiny jumping insect
trick play noun
an unusual surprising play
flea-flick verb
to use this play (informal)

Commonly confused: flea flicker or flicker?

flea flicker vs flicker

A flicker is a flash of light, while a flea flicker is a football play.

Practice

The quarterback handed off, took the ball back, and threw deep. The play is called a ___.

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