flail

A national brand-name institution with a $2.5 billion endowment and a storied 150-year tradition is suddenly beginning to flail.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 30, 2026

He opened the unlocked door of a police vehicle, climbed into the back and began to flail in distress.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 24, 2026

Gobert was initially assessed a common foul, but officials ruled it a flagrant after a review, saying he made an "unnecessary flail" with his arm.

From Barron's ● Feb. 21, 2026

"When other fish get caught in those nets they sort of flail and it sends out a vibration underwater, sort of like ringing the dinner bell," says Prof Pepin-Neff.

From BBC ● Oct. 3, 2025

He moved into it and I heard him flail around.

From "Fallen Angels" by Walter Dean Myers

In chatty yet carefully measured tunes with nearly as many hooks as words, McRae illuminates the accumulated humiliations and misunderstandings against which every couple flails.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 5, 2025

When he flails the way he did in the playoffs last year, it’s bound to raise suspicions that he’s distracted or not entirely invested in the sport in which he makes his living.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 13, 2024

Men wore black, rhythmically beating their chests in mourning or using flails to strike their backs.

From Seattle Times ● Jul. 28, 2023

Lawson appears to be pulling Sheppard down, and after Lawson disappears, Sheppard flies more freely, but also flails, falling in beautiful slow-motion arcs.

From New York Times ● Aug. 26, 2022

They beat it out with flails, he and the woman together.

From "The Good Earth" by Pearl S. Buck

He and Gail gave up their salaries and lived off credit cards while Dave flailed, trying to keep their creditors at bay.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026

As time passed and no government help appeared, del Giudice became exasperated and flailed at the rubble.

From Barron's ● Jun. 26, 2026

They attacked the game, while Rangers flailed wildly.

From BBC ● Sep. 25, 2025

There were costume changes and choreographed dance numbers, even an intro where a moving tentacle flailed halfway out of her mouth.

From Salon ● Apr. 16, 2025

Blue Eyes flailed for him, trying to reach around and get hold of him, then bent forward sharply and tumbled him over her back.

From "Ship Breaker" by Paolo Bacigalupi

"There are farmers really flailing away" and drastically concerned about fuel costs, Joe Logan, interim president of the Ohio Farmers Union, told AFP.

From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026

Now a respected New Yorker magazine writer promoting his forthcoming book on the U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Michael is contacted by Lou, who has been flailing since returning to the States.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026

A humanoid’s frantic attempts to stay upright—arms flailing, legs skittering—bears an uncanny resemblance to the choreographed collapses of Charlie Chaplin or Buster Keaton.

From Slate ● Sep. 27, 2026

Sir Paul Smith, the doyen of British fashion, is flailing around in his office with two large rubber chickens and making them squeak them with gusto.

From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026

She maybe balanced for about three and a half seconds, shooting the camera a big smile before flailing off the surfboard a second later.

From "Five Feet Apart" by Rachael Lippincott