Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

flurry

American  
[flur-ee, fluhr-ee] / ˈflɜr i, ˈflʌr i /

noun

plural

flurries

  1. a light, brief shower of snow.

  2. sudden commotion, excitement, or confusion; nervous hurry.

    There was a flurry of activity before the guests arrived.
    Synonyms:
    ado, fluster, fuss, to-do, stir, pother, upset

  3. Stock Exchange.

    1. a brief rise or fall in prices.

    2. a brief, unusually heavy period of trading.

  4. a sudden gust of wind.

verb (used with object)

flurried, flurrying

  1. to put (a person) into a flurry; confuse; fluster.

verb (used without object)

flurried, flurrying

  1. (of snow) to fall or be blown in a flurry.

  2. to move in an excited or agitated manner.

flurry British  
/ ˈflʌrɪ /

noun

  1. a sudden commotion or burst of activity

  2. a light gust of wind or rain or fall of snow

  3. stock exchange a sudden brief increase in trading or fluctuation in stock prices

  4. the death spasms of a harpooned whale

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

  1. to confuse or bewilder or be confused or bewildered

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • flurriedly adverb

Etymology

Origin of flurry

1680–90, blend of flutter and hurry

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The High Desert Art Fair offers a distinctly different art fair experience a month after the flurry of Los Angeles fairs in February.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 31, 2026

If Moonshot does eventually list in the financial hub, it will add to the flurry of homegrown Chinese AI and chip companies rushing to capitalize on the AI boom.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 27, 2026

“Apple’s innovation engine was in high gear this month with a flurry of new products unveiled across the Mac, iPhone, iPad, and AirPods families,” White wrote Thursday.

From Barron's • Mar. 26, 2026

This is not the first time that US foreign policy has been linked to a flurry of betting activity.

From BBC • Mar. 24, 2026

There was a flurry of overhauling and painting and mending to be done.

From "Jacob Have I Loved" by Katherine Paterson

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.