Definition
A wing flap system in which an electric motor drives the flaps to the selected position when the pilot moves a flap switch or selector in the cockpit. The motor extends or retracts the flaps through a mechanical linkage, and a position indicator shows the current flap setting.
Plain English
Flaps that move up or down because an electric motor drives them when you flip a switch in the cockpit, rather than you pulling a lever by hand.
Context Anchor
Seen during airplane configuration changes, especially when setting the airplane up for takeoff, approach, and landing.
Derivation
Electric comes from the Greek word elektron, meaning amber, which was linked to early observations of electricity. Flap comes from an old word meaning to strike or move back and forth; in aviation, it came to mean a movable panel on the wing.
Why Pilots Care
Electric flaps give simple, reliable operation in many light aircraft but stop working if electrical power is lost.
Intuition Check
Do not think of electric flaps as a different kind of aerodynamic surface. They are ordinary wing flaps; electric only tells you how they are moved.
Example Sentence 1
On downwind, the pilot selected 10° on the electric flaps and waited for the indicator to confirm the setting before continuing the approach.
Example Sentence 2
During the preflight inspection the pilot verified that the electric flaps extended and retracted without binding.