Webster's English Dictionary

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flash

1. flash \'flash\ vb [ME flaschen, of imit. origin] 1: RUSH, DASH - used of 
   flowing water  2: to break forth in or like a sudden flame or flare  3a: to 
   appear suddenly  3b: to move with great speed  4a: to break forth or out so 
   as to make a sudden display  4b: to act or speak vehemently and suddenly 
   esp. in anger  5: to gleam or glow intermittently  archaic  1a: SPLASH  1b: 
   to fill by a sudden inflow of water  2a: to cause the sudden appearance of 
   (light)  2b: to cause to burst violently into flame; also : to burn for det 
   ermining character of residue 2c1: to cause (light) to reflect  2c2: to 
   cause (as a mirror) to reflect light  2d: to convey by means of flashes of 
   light  3a: to make known or cause to appear with great speed  3b: to show 
   off  3c: to expose to view suddenly and briefly  4: to cover with or form 
   into a thin layer : as  4a: to protect against rain by covering with sheet 
   metal or a substitute  4b: to coat with a thin layer  5: to subject to 
   exposure to light before development in order to modify d etail or 
   toneGLITTER, GLISTEN, GLIMMER, SHIMMER mean to send forth light. FLASH 
   implies a sudden and transient outburst of bright light; GLEAM suggests a 
   steady light seen through an obscuring medium or against a dark background; 
   GLANCE suggests a bright darting light reflected from a quickly moving 
   surface; GLINT implies a cold-glancing light; SPARKLE suggests innumerable 
   moving points of bright light; GLITTER connotes a brilliant sparkling or 
   gleaming, but often connotes a cold or menacing quality; GLISTEN applies to 
   the soft sparkle from a wet or oily surface; GLIMMER suggests a faint, or 
   wavering gleam; SHIMMER implies a soft tremulous gleaming or a blurred 
   reflection - flash.er n SYN syn FLASH, GLEAM, GLANCE, GLINT, SPARKLE, 
2. flash n 1a: a sudden burst of light  1b: a movement of a flag in 
   signaling  2: a sudden and brilliant burst (as of wit)  3: a brief time  
   4a: SHOW, DISPLAY; esp : a vulgar ostentatious display  archaic  4b: a 
   showy ostentatious person  4c: one that attracts notice; esp : an 
   outstanding athlete  obs  5: thieves' slang  6: a rush of water released to 
   permit passage of a boat  7: something flashed : as  7a: GLIMPSE, LOOK  7b: 
   SMILE  7c: a first brief news report  7d: FLASHLIGHT, FLASHLIGHT  7e: a 
   quick-spreading flame or momentary intense outburst of radiant heat 
3. flash aj 1a: FLASHY, SHOWY  1b: SPORTY, FAST  1c: of, relating to, or 
   characteristic of persons considered social outcas ts {~ language} 2: of 
   sudden origin and short duration