Emily Dickinson Lexicon

FLUSH, v.i. [G. fliessen, imperf. floss, to flow; D. vlieten, in a different dialect. It coincides in elements with blush, blaze and flash.]

1. To flow and spread suddenly; to rush; as, blood flushes into the face.
2. To come in haste; to start. B. Jonson.
3. To appear suddenly, as redness or a blush. A blush rose on their cheeks, / Flushing and fading like the changeful play / Of colors on a dolphin. Percival.
4. To become suddenly red; to glow; as, the cheeks flush.
5. To be gay, splendid or beautiful. At once, arrayed / In all the colors of the flushing year, / The garden glows. Thomson.