Flick means to move something with a quick, light, snapping motion, usually using your finger or wrist. When you flick a light switch, you push it up or down with a fast, sharp movement. You might flick a bug off your arm or flick through the pages of a book with your thumb.

The word captures that sense of quickness and lightness. A flick of the wrist can send a playing card sailing across the room. Basketball players flick their wrists when shooting to give the ball backspin. The motion is small but purposeful, more controlled than a throw but faster than careful placement.

People also use flick as a noun to mean a quick, light movement: “With a flick of her finger, she knocked the marble across the table.” And informally, flick can mean a movie, especially in casual conversation: “Want to see a flick this weekend?”

The word often appears with “off” or “away,” describing how you remove something quickly: flicking crumbs off the counter, flicking away an annoying fly, or flicking dust off an old book.