Pieces of cloth with distinctive designs representing nations or organizations; marks for attention or becomes tired. Plural of flag.
From Middle English 'flagge' meaning 'reed, rush'. The connection to banners came from early flags being made from plant materials. The verb sense 'to become tired' developed from the image of something drooping like a wilted plant.
The word 'flag' connects plant life to national identity through the metaphor of something that waves in the wind. The phrase 'flagging energy' preserves the botanical origin, as wilting plants droop just like tired people or drooping banners.
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