to flag down
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
To stop someone; from motor racing, in which the stewards wave a flag at the winner or at any driver they require to stop or to warn to proceed with caution.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “to flag down” mean?
To stop someone; from motor racing, in which the stewards wave a flag at the winner or at any driver they require to stop or to warn to proceed with caution.
Is “to flag down” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.