Language: en
Meaning: (literally)To display the flag of one'scountry, especially as anexpressionofpatrioticpride.; (idiomatic)Of anavalvesselormilitaryforce, toidentifyitself by displaying the flag of itscountry of origin, especially in order to establish anauthoritativepresenceand to exertdiplomaticorpoliticalinfluence.1896, John Barrett, “America's Interest in Eastern Asia”, inNorth American Review, volume162, number472, pages263–264:A few suggestions are given . . . maintaining an effective naval squadron toshow the flagand protect American interests.1947September 29, “Martin Lo”, inTime:On a routine cruise to "show the flag," the British warships Amphion and Contest steamed into the harbor of Santa Ana Island in the southern Solomons (which are under a British protectorate).2008,BioWare,Mass Effect, Redwood City: Electronic Arts,→ISBN,→OCLC, PC, scene: Starships: Cruisers Codex entry:Cruisers perform routine independent "show the flag" patrols in settled systems and lead flotillas of frigates in small engagements, such as pirate suppression campaigns.; (idiomatic,by extension)Torepresentone's country or some other group in a manner intended to suggest the authority orimportanceof that country or group.1980January 28, “‘Who Lost Afghanistan?’”, inTime:Henry Kissinger stopped off in Kabul toshow the flagfor a few hours in 1974.2004January 19, “Bush operatives moving to primary states”, inCNN, retrieved 4 Jan. 2009:The Bush–Cheney re-election campaign will send a high-profile team of surrogates to both Iowa and New Hampshire in the coming days to train and motivate Republican activists and to "show the flag" in states in which the Democratic presidential race has dominated political debate.
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