Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • intransitive verb To show a horizontal line on a monitor indicating no electrical activity in an electrocardiogram or an electroencephalogram.
  • intransitive verb Informal To die.
  • intransitive verb To be in an unchanging condition.
  • adjective Being or relating to an electrocardiogram or an electroencephalogram that demonstrates no electrical activity.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun asystole; the absence of heart contractions
  • noun the disappearance of the rhythmic peaks displayed on a heart monitor
  • verb intransitive (of the heart) to stop beating
  • verb intransitive (by extension) to die
  • verb To stay at the same level, without development; or, to fall.

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

flat +‎ line.

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