flake1
  
  n.
   - a small, flat, very thin piece of something. ▸Archaeology  a piece of hard stone chipped off for use as a tool. 
- a snowflake.
- N. Amer. informal a crazy or eccentric person.
v.
  - come away from a surface in flakes.
- split into flakes.
Derivative
  
  Etymology
  ME: the immediate source is unknown, the senses perh. deriving from different words; prob. of Gmc origin and rel. to flag2 and flaw1.
 
  
    
flake2
  
  n.
 a rack for storing or drying food such as fish.
Etymology
  ME (denoting a wicker hurdle): perh. of Scand. origin.
 
  
    
flake3
  
  v.
 
(
flake out)
 
informal fall asleep; drop from exhaustion.
Etymology
  C15 (in the senses ‘become languid’ and (of a garment) ‘fall in folds’): var. of obs. flack and flag4.
 
  
    
flake4
  
  n.
 a single turn of a coiled rope or hawser.
v.
 lay (a rope) in loose coils in order to prevent it tangling. 
▸lay (a sail) down in folds either side of the boom.
Etymology
  C17: of unknown origin.