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flippant

flippant

15 7.7
Not showing respect or being serious in important situations
  • adjective
  • /ˈflɪpənt/
translation icon : frívolo
  • His flippant remarks about the tragedy showed a complete lack of empathy.
  • give a flippant remark

Calvin, you know when when I start being flippant about stuff, You're just uncouth.

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Examples

  • But his flippant dismissal of your nocturnal visits was the beginning of the end.

    Fiction book (1996)
  • And now this is going to sound flippant, but there's a more serious point behind this.

  • You were just being flippant.

  • "Fantastic" is a little flippant.

  • Her tone was flippant, but her heart had started to beat rapidly.

    Fiction book (1992)
  • Therefore, my comments become a whole lot less flippant and a whole lot more true.

    Blog text (32)
  • I suppose I should hang my head in shame for being flippant and not being a solemn victim.

    Blog text (29)
  • I cannot take seriously the flippant drive-by comments of educational professionals outside the classroom.

    Blog text (16)
  • Steven, with his flippant, rational cynicism, struck me as the most defeated person in the group.

    Academic text (1998)
  • It just still struck me how flippant people were about something being executed in midtown Manhattan.

Synonyms

unserious
vsflippant
1 4.6

Acting in a joking way when care is needed

is more about showing disrespectful levity rather than simple lack of seriousness
flippy
vsflippant
1 8.8

A person who does not take things seriously and shows little respect

is more about treating serious matters with inappropriate levity
flip
vsflippant
1 7.6

Not taking things seriously and showing little respect

is specifically about treating serious matters with disrespectful levity
light-minded
vsflippant
1 7.9

Shows little care for serious matters and acts without thinking

emphasizes disrespectful levity rather than mere carelessness

Antonyms

452 1.4

Calm and focused, not playful or joking

150 1.1

Being polite and showing admiration for someone

How Serious

disrespectful
121 3.0
glib
24 7.9
flippant
15 7.7
frivolous
74 6.8
light-hearted
11 3.5

Surface Forms

flippant positive

Etymology

The word flippant comes from the simple word flip, which means 'quick' or 'light', plus the ending -ant. A helpful way to remember it is to picture a quick, light answer that feels 'not serious' or 'rude', so to be flippant is to treat a serious matter without proper respect.