flustered
Americanadjective
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of flustered
Explanation
To be flustered is to lose your cool. When you're flustered, you're embarrassed, agitated, or just confused. If your pants fell down in the middle of class while you were giving a presentation, you'd probably be flustered: highly embarrassed, out of breath, and a little freaked out. It's hard to concentrate when you're flustered — it's a distracting state of mind. Being flustered isn't quite as bad as being panicked, but it's close. People can also get flustered by good things, like if someone you had a crush on kissed you.
Vocabulary lists containing flustered
The Giver
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The Boy in the Striped Pajamas
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The City of Ember
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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.
Flustered, I made my inaugural visit to Bill’s store, where he patiently walked me through what I needed to set things right.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 12, 2026
Flustered, I deflect the question by asking whether putting together the career-spanning concert has given her new perspectives on her life.
From BBC • Jul. 24, 2024
Flustered by the question and laughter from other journalists and his fellow panelists, Ford responded with a cheeky answer.
From Los Angeles Times • May 22, 2023
Flustered by the flies, Chamberlain threw a pair of wild pitches that allowed Cleveland to tie the score in the eighth inning.
From Seattle Times • Oct. 14, 2022
Flustered, disheartened, I said I did not know the tune.
From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson
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.
