flirter (French)

Where does "flirter" come from?

The French verb 'flirter' was borrowed from the English verb 'flirt'[1]. Later forms in French featuring the spelling '-eu-' may have arisen due to the influence of the French word 'fleur', meaning 'flower'[1].

Open questions

• The influence of the French word fleur on the development of variants with eu is a proposed possibility rather than a fully certain historical mechanism. [1]
• The ultimate origin of the English source word flirt is obscure and remains uncertain. [2]

Full etymology tree

• flirter (French), 'to flirt'
  • borrowed flirt (English), 'A sudden jerk; a quick throw or cast; a darting motion'
  • influenced by fleur (French), 'flower; bloom; blossom; collectively, the reproductive organs and the envelope which surrounds them in angiosperms (also called "flowering plants")'

Ancestors

• flirt (English)

Sources

1. flirter (French) - Wiktionary
2. flirt (English) - Wiktionary

Updated September 2026

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Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris