different between inch vs flow

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?nt?/
• Rhymes: -?nt?

Etymology 1

From Middle English ynche, enche, from Old English ynce, borrowed from Latin uncia (“twelfth part”). Doublet of ounce.

Noun

inch (plural inches)

1. A unit of length equal to one twelfth of a foot, or exactly 2.54 centimetres.
2. (meteorology) The amount of water which would cover a surface to the depth of an inch, used as a measurement of rainfall.
3. The amount of an alcoholic beverage which would fill a glass or bottle to the depth of an inch.
4. (figuratively) A very short distance.

   "Don't move an inch!"

Derived terms

Descendants

• ? Japanese: ??? (inchi)
• ? Korean: ?? (inchi)

Translations

Verb

inch (third-person singular simple present inches, present participle inching, simple past and past participle inched)

1. (intransitive, followed by a preposition) To advance very slowly, or by a small amount (in a particular direction).

   Fearful of falling, he inched along the window ledge.

   • 1957, J. D. Salinger, "Zooey", in, 1961, Franny and Zooey:

     The window blind had been lowered — Zooey had done all his bathtub reading by the light from the three-bulb overhead fixture—but a fraction of morning light inched under the blind and onto the title page of the manuscript.
2. To drive by inches, or small degrees.
   • 1692, John Dryden, Cleomenes, the Spartan Hero, a Tragedy

     He gets too far into the soldier's grace / And inches out my master.

3. To deal out by inches; to give sparingly.

Derived terms

Translations

See also

• thou
• mil

Etymology 2

From Scottish Gaelic innis

Noun

inch (plural inches)

1. (Scotland) A small island

Usage notes

• Found especially in the names of small Scottish islands, e.g. Inchcolm, Inchkeith.

Anagrams

• Ch'in, Chin, chin, ichn-

Middle English

Noun

inch

1. Alternative form of ynche

English

Pronunciation

• enPR: fl?
  • (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /fl??/
  • (General American) IPA^(key): /flo?/
• Homophones: floe, Flo
• Rhymes: -??

Etymology 1

From Middle English flowen, from Old English fl?wan (“to flow”), from Proto-West Germanic *fl?an, from Proto-Germanic *fl?an? (“to flow”), from Proto-Indo-European *pl?w-, lengthened o-grade form of *plew- (“to fly, flow, run”). Compare float.

Noun

flow (countable and uncountable, plural flows)

1. A movement in people or things with a particular way in large numbers or amounts
2. The movement of a real or figurative fluid.
3. (mathematics) A formalization of the idea of the motion of particles in a fluid, as a group action of the real numbers on a set.

   The notion of flow is basic to the study of ordinary differential equations.

4. The rising movement of the tide.
5. Smoothness or continuity.

6. The amount of a fluid that moves or the rate of fluid movement.

7. A flow pipe, carrying liquid away from a boiler or other central plant (compare with return pipe which returns fluid to central plant).
8. (psychology) A mental state characterized by concentration, focus and enjoyment of a given task.
9. The emission of blood during menstruation.

10. (rap music slang) The ability to skilfully rap along to a beat.

11. (computing) The sequence of steps taken in a piece of software to perform some action. (Usually preceded by an attributive such as login or search.)

Synonyms

• (continuity): See also Thesaurus:continuity

Antonyms

• (movement of the tide): ebb
• (continuity): See also Thesaurus:discontinuity

Hyponyms

Derived terms

• ebb and flow
• flowchart
• flowmeter
• freeflow
• single-flow

Translations

Further reading

• flow on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• Flow (psychology) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Verb

flow (third-person singular simple present flows, present participle flowing, simple past and past participle flowed)

1. (intransitive) To move as a fluid from one position to another.

   Rivers flow from springs and lakes.

   Tears flow from the eyes.

2. (intransitive) To proceed; to issue forth.

   Wealth flows from industry and economy.
3. (intransitive) To move or match smoothly, gracefully, or continuously.

   The writing is grammatically correct, but it just doesn't flow.

   • , Dedication

     Virgil […] is […] sweet and flowing in his hexameters.

4. (intransitive) To have or be in abundance; to abound, so as to run or flow over.

   • In that day […] the hills shall flow with milk.

   • 1845, John Wilson, The Genius and Character of Robert Burns

     the exhilaration of a night that needed not the influence of the flowing bowl

5. (intransitive) To hang loosely and wave.

   a flowing mantle; flowing locks

   • March 11, 1788, Alexander Hamilton, The Federalist Papers

     the imperial purple flowing in his train

6. (intransitive) To rise, as the tide; opposed to ebb.

   The tide flows twice in twenty-four hours.
7. (transitive, computing) To arrange (text in a wordprocessor, etc.) so that it wraps neatly into a designated space; to reflow.
8. (transitive) To cover with water or other liquid; to overflow; to inundate; to flood.
9. (transitive) To cover with varnish.
10. (intransitive) To discharge excessive blood from the uterus.

Derived terms

• flowable, reflowable
• free-flowing
• overflow
• underflow

Translations

Etymology 2

Uncertain. Perhaps from Old Norse flói (“a large bay, firth”), see floe. Compare Scots flow (“peat-bog, marsh”), Icelandic flói (“marshy ground”).

Noun

flow (plural flows)

1. (Scotland) A morass or marsh.

References

• “flow, n.².”, in OED Online ?, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, launched 2000
• “flow, v., n.¹” in the Dictionary of the Scots Language, Edinburgh: Scottish Language Dictionaries.

Anagrams

• Wolf, fowl, wolf

Spanish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?flow/, [?flow]

Noun

flow m (plural flows)

1. flow