Someone who is flirtatious behaves in a way that tries, on purpose, to draw sexual or romantic attention — a look held a little too long, a teasing line, a laugh that invites the other person closer. It is about the signal, not only about falling in love. A person can be flirtatious for fun, for practice, or because they want a date; it does not always mean they will follow through. The word can be light ('a flirtatious smile') or judging, depending on who says it and about whom. It is more often used of a manner than of a deep feeling. Friendly is not the same thing. Warmth, kindness, and eye contact can be simply human. Calling that flirtatious when it was not can embarrass someone, especially a girl or woman, whose ordinary friendliness gets read as an invitation. At the same time, the messy truth: people do use looks and jokes to test interest, and adults recognise the difference more by context than by one rule. The word is a little grown-up; A1–A2 learners will meet it in stories and magazines more than in the classroom list.