Meanings
present singular third person flaps one's gums · participle present flapping one's gums · participle past flapped one's gums · past flapped one's gums
- UScolloquialidiomaticTo speak (idly); to talk without effect.
What's that old coot flapping his gums about this time?
1 more example
It’s a relief in director Johannes Roberts’ horror movie that there are no actual chimps flapping their gums while voiceover actors dub corny dialogue.
2026 January 9, David Rooney, “‘Primate’ Review: College Kids Fight to Survive a Rabid Pet Chimp in a Slasher Movie That’s as Enjoyably Nerve-Shredding as It Is Silly”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 11 Jan 2026Synonyms: flap one's jaws, flap one's lips
Synonyms & antonyms
verbTo speak (idly); to talk without effect.
Cite this entry
flap one's gums. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/flap%20one's%20gums
“flap one's gums.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/flap%20one's%20gums. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “flap one's gums,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/flap%20one's%20gums.
Source: flap one's gums on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.