The other day, I heard a reporter on NPR use “flaunt” when she meant “flout.”

“Flaunt” means: to show off; to display proudly; to exhibit ostentatiously.

Like:  “It was unseemly of him to flaunt his wealth as he traveled in the poverty-stricken areas of Africa.”

(We’ve all heard the expression, “If you’ve got it, flaunt it.”)

“Flout,” on the other hand, means something completely different:  to disregard contemptuously; to ignore a rule, convention or expectation of conduct.

You “flout” the rules, the law, the dress code or a social convention.

You cannot “flaunt” those things.

You might “flaunt” your engagement ring, your figure, your abs, your wardrobe or your wealth.

Like:  “She flouted the middle school’s dress code when she wore the skimpy top.”

Not, “The ambassador flaunted convention when he refused to shake the prime minister’s hand.”

It is, indeed, unfortunate that several online dictionaries have done what an Oxford University Press blog refers to as “thrown in the towel” on this one.  These dictionaries suggest that “flaunt,” since it has been used incorrectly so often, has now come to mean the same as “flout.”  (Granted, it is the second definition of “flaunt.”)

How is it that our reference works give up so easily?