Q I recently used the phrase “in like Flynn” and my wife had never heard it before. I began to wonder where the phrase came from and how it was first used.

A: The phrase “in like Flynn” is something of a mystery to word enthusiasts. No record remains of exactly how the expression was originally used. Although some have attributed the phrase to a development of rhyming slang, most commentators agree that it is rooted in the films of adventure star Errol Flynn.

The first report of the phrase came in 1945, when it was recorded as pilots’ slang meaning something like “Everything is OK. … I am having no more trouble than Errol Flynn has in his cinematic feats.”

Later, the phrase was reported to be a poker term that described a player who calls his bets ahead of turn; in other words, a player so confident that he throws caution to the wind, as Errol Flynn did both on and off the screen.

More recently, the phrase “to be in like Flynn” has been used to mean “to seduce a woman quickly,” presumably in tribute to the star’s notorious sexual escapades.

Overall, “in like Flynn” conveys the notion that someone has pulled off a daring, difficult, perhaps risky maneuver with little effort or inconvenience.

This column was prepared by the editors of Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, Tenth Edition. Send questions to: Merriam-Webster’s Wordwatch, P.O. Box 281, 47 Federal St., Springfield, MA 01102.

One interesting rumor has it that Errol Flynn originally wanted to title his autobiography “In like Me” but was persuaded to use the more decorous title “My Wicked Wicked Ways.”

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