Consulting the Dictionary

FLOW

–verb (used without object)

1.	to move along in a stream: The river flowed slowly to the sea.

2.	to circulate: blood flowing through one's veins.

3.	to stream or well forth: Warmth flows from the sun.

4.	to issue or proceed from a source: Orders flowed from the office.

5.	to menstruate.

6.	to come or go as in a stream: A constant stream of humanity flowed by.

7.	to proceed continuously and smoothly: Melody flowed from the violin.

8.	to hang loosely at full length: Her hair flowed over her shoulders.

9.	to abound in something: The tavern flowed with wine.

10.	to rise and advance, as the tide (opposed to EBB).

–verb (used with object)

11.	to cause or permit to flow: to flow paint on a wall before brushing.

12.	to cover with water or other liquid; flood.

–noun

13.	an act of flowing.

14.	movement in or as if in a stream.

15.	the rate of flowing.

16.	the volume of fluid that flows through a passage of any given section during a unit of time: Oil flow of the well was 500 barrels a day.

17.	something that flows; stream.

18.	an outpouring or discharge of something, as in a stream: a flow of blood.

19. Menstruation

20.	an overflowing; flood.

21.	the rise of the tide (opposed to EBB).

22.	Machinery. progressive distortion of a metal object under continuous service at high temperature.

23.	Physics. the transference of energy: heat flow .

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[Origin: bef. 900; (v.) ME flowen, OE flōwan; akin to MLG vlōien, ON flōa; (n.) late ME: surge of a wave, deriv. of the v.]

—Related forms

flow·a·ble, adjective

flow·a·bil·i·ty, noun

—Synonyms 1. Flow, gush, spout, spurt refer to certain of the movements characteristic of fluids. Flow is the general term: Water flows. A stream of blood flows. To gush is to rush forth copiously from a cavity, in as large a volume as can issue therefrom, as the result of some strong impelling force: The water will gush out if the main breaks. Spout and spurt both imply the ejecting of a liquid from a cavity by some internal impetus given to it. Spout implies a rather steady, possibly well-defined, jet or stream, not necessarily of long duration but always of considerable force: A whale spouts. Spurt implies a forcible, possibly sudden, spasmodic, or intermittent issue or jet: The liquid spurted out suddenly when the bottle cap was pushed in. Spout applies only to liquids; the other terms apply also to gases. 7. run. 9. teem.

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.