Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. A large vessel, usually of metal or pottery, with a handle and spout and often a lid, used for holding wine or other liquors.
- n. The quantity of liquid that such a vessel can hold.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. A vessel for holding liquids, especially for table use. It has a spout, a handle, and usually a cover.
Wiktionary
- n. A large bottle for drinks such as wine or cider.
- n. The amount that such a bottle holds, about 1.13 litres.
- n. A large vessel usually with a handle, spout and lid, for drinks such as wine or cider.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. A vessel with a narrow mouth, used for holding and conveying liquors. It is generally larger than a bottle, and of leather or stoneware rather than of glass.
WordNet 3.0
- n. a large metal or pottery vessel with a handle and spout; used to hold alcoholic beverages (usually wine)
Etymologies
- Middle English flagon, variation of Middle English flakon, from Middle French fla(s)con, from Late Latin flascōnem, accusative of flascō "flask, bottle, container", from Frankish flaska "flask, bottle" from Proto-Germanic *flaskōn (“bottle”), from Proto-Germanic *flehtanan (“to plait, braid”), from the practice of plaiting or wrapping bottles in straw casing. See fiasco. Akin to Old High German flasca, flaska ("bottle, flask") (German Flasche), Old Norse flaska (Danish flaske), Old English flasce, flaxe ("bottle, flask"). More at flask (Wiktionary)
- Middle English, from Old French flacon, from Late Latin flascō, flascōn-, bottle; see flask. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“The flagon is the only piece of the church plate belonging to this period.”
“flagon," but a "cake," a confection, as the Septuagint renders it, made of flour and honey.”
“By what right do you drink from my flagon of life?”
The Huffington Post: Herman Melville's Homoerotic Side Highlighted In New Book
“Martin Ramin for The Wall Street Journal 2010 Domaines Ott Château de Selle Rosé 2010 Domaines Ott Château de Selle Rosé, $40 This wine is reliably remembered by just about anyone who's ever had it—in large part because of its distinctive bottle, which is shaped a bit like a large perfume flagon.”
The Wall Street Journal: Drink, Memory: How to Remember That Wine
“She sits out front under a tattered awning all day in school holidays, watching people, drinking from a two litre flagon of sherry.”
“That leaves me enough gold left over for a flagon of cheap wine, a belly full of hot mutton and a roll or two with a lusty wench!”
“We have indeed reached some significant milestones around here of late, and it's high time we celebrated with a flagon of ale, a buxom wench or two, and our very first CONTEST on CROM!”
“Time to polish off this flagon of ale ... hic ... there's virgins in distress, and in need of rescuing …”
“That was when the youth appeared, with a flagon of wine and three cups.”
“Every warrior in the area converged to gaze on this ragtag band, came to lift a mighty flagon to their health and hear them tell their tales of valor.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘flagon’.
-
EN - archaic words
abide, abjure, abroad, adamant, afield, aforetime, aghast, anon, apace, argent, assuage, aught and 328 more...
-
Interesting words
A list of words that are odd or words that I have looked up.
concupiscence, brize, scree, scoria, forestaff, spanaemia, valetudinarianism, distasture, pyrethrum, laudanum, gentian, bicameral and 11184 more...
-
A Garnish of Pewter
A list of pewter items and wares gleaned from the literature, or found listed for sale in antique catalogs - from spoons to stills and chamber pots to church cups. A synonym for the larger, heavier...
teapot, porringer, flagon, wine funnel, pepper shaker, broth bowl, basin, candlesticks, tankard, beaker, measure, chalice and 155 more...
-
Jugs
aludel, aljofaina, pig, chytra, gallipot, brown-george, coffee-pot, cezve, ibrik, biggin, drip pot, water-jug and 78 more...
-
Arabian Nights
scheherazade, sinbad, bazaar, magic carpet, bedouin, leviathan, aladdin, ali baba, open sesame, 40 thieves, baghdad, ceylon and 32 more...
-
October Words-10033
During the month of October, post at least 10 new words to this list. Make sure you cite where you read the word (book/author/pg) and quote the context/sentence where you found it. If someone has a...
bedel, nirvana, colloquialisms, Porcine, proletariat, Xanadu, decorous, bourgeois, unencumbered, gratis, cosseted, Brank and 30 more...
-
Just 'cause I like 'em, F
felony, frolic, fend, fuselage, farthingale, freewheeling, frigorific, flummery, fancypants, felsitic, flagstone, flageolet and 295 more...
-
azd's Words
adamantine, abatial, ablate, ablative, abrogate, accretive, acromegaly, acrostic, actinism, actinic, acuity, adduce and 968 more...
-
Studying
parry, palliate, cadge, dissemble, bathos, arrogate, dilatory, ipso facto, ontogeny, recondite, specious, miasma and 90 more...
-
Words I will probably never use
décolleté, pendragon, amerce, viviparous, dragoon, brigand, outlaw, outlawry, lugubrious, boor, contretemps, decrepit and 151 more...
-
ulyssean
... as in "by James Joyce"
stately, plump, aloft, gurgling, untonsured, chrysostomos, jowl, parapet, jesuit, indigestion, scutter, noserag and 688 more...
-
all the angles
and sides
rangle, fangle, fingle-fangle, bangle, dangle, gangle, jangle, mangle, tangle, wangle, wrangle, brangle and 82 more...
-
Objects and Things
anteroom, flagon, cocotte, ambry, cloche, pate, vespiary, fricassee, carousal, psoas, tome, aperture and 38 more...
-
Poetrie: Custard the Dragon
The Tale of Custard the Dragon
By Ogden Nash
(as per uselessness's poetrie)
Belinda lived in a little white house,
With a little black kitten and a little gra...pyrate, gyrate, gobbled, flagon, grog, squirm, jangling, mouseholed, trickled, yelp, winda, week and 9 more...
-
'Wasted' Words
Alcohol-related words that tickle the ear & the fancy
absinthe, ambrosial, Bordeaux, burgundy, bibulous, wineskin, champagne, claret, corkscrew, drip dickey, frizzante, flagon and 74 more...
-
Containers
Beautiful nouns that hold other nouns.
phial, vial, flagon, chalice, demijohn, ampoule, cauldron, carafe, ewer, urn, amphora, pitcher and 9 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for flagon.

kmassie From the book White Oleander by Janet Fitch. Pg.137
"I found an impossibly soft stocking, the garter kind, cloud taupe, laddered, and an empty flagon of Ma Griffe perfume, its label decorated with a scribble of black lines on white. " Oct 31, 2010
bilby Are you a New Zealander, punch? Sep 27, 2008
punchcard New Zealand definition of flagon:
A glass vessel filled with draught beer available in public bars or bottle stores. Drinkers could take their own washed flagons or swap their empties for those pre-filled and corked ready for sale. The flagon was followed by the half-gallon jar and was preceded by the square rigger and the bluey. Most commonly used during the period of six-o'clock closing of bars. Sep 27, 2008
brtom Miss Douce reached high to take a flagon, stretching her satin arm, her bust, that all but burst, so high.
Joyce, Ulysses, 11 Jan 6, 2007