subs. (nautical).—1.  Primarily a stylish craft; hence, by implication, anything out of the common. For synonyms, see STUNNER.

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  2.  (colloquial).—A row; a dispute; a ‘drunk’; or spree. Cf., FLARE-UP.

2

  Verb. (thieves’).—1.  Specifically to whisk out; hence, to steal actively, lightly, or delicately.

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  1850.  Lloyd’s Weekly, 3 Feb. Low Lodging Houses of London. B. tried his pocket saying, ‘I’ll show you how to do a hankerchief’; but the baker looked round and B. stopped; and just after that I FLARED it (whisked the handerchief out); and that’s the first I did.’

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  1851–61.  H. MAYHEW, London Labour and the London Poor, I., 457. Just after that I FLARED it (whisked the handerchief out).

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  2.  (common).—To swagger; to go with a bounce.

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  1841.  LEMAN REDE, Sixteen-String Jack, ii., 3.

        Crissy odsbuds, I’ll on with my duds,
  And over the water we’ll FLARE.

7

  ALL OF A FLARE, adv. phr. (thieves’).—Bunglingly.

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  1839.  W. A. MILES, Poverty, Mendicity, and Crime, p. 113. Some of the girls at Milberry’s pick pockets at night: while one talks to the man, the other robs him; but they are not dextrous, they pull it out ALL OF A FLARE.

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