fluster
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to put into a state of agitated confusion.
His constant criticism flustered me.
- Synonyms:
- disturb, disconcert, bewilder, upset
-
to excite and confuse with drink.
verb (used without object)
noun
verb
noun
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
flustersimple
-
flusterssimple
-
have flusteredperfect
-
has flusteredperfect
-
am flusteringprogressive
-
are flusteringprogressive
-
is flusteringprogressive
-
have been flusteringperfect progressive
-
has been flusteringperfect progressive
Past
-
flusteredsimple
-
had flusteredperfect
-
was flusteringprogressive
-
were flusteringprogressive
-
had been flusteringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of fluster
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English flostren; cf. bluster, Old Norse flaustra “to hurry”
Explanation
To fluster someone is to make them feel upset or agitated. There are many things that might fluster you: giving a speech in front of the whole school, solving a challenging math problem, or even getting a love note from an admirer. If your coworker is about to give the biggest presentation of his life, you’ll probably only fluster, or upset, him if you point out that his socks don’t match. Use the adjective form, flustered, to describe someone when they’re feeling this way. Most of us get flustered once in a while, but if you’re “easily flustered,” it happens to you quite often. Don’t worry, though; that just gives you more opportunities to practice using this vocabulary word.
Vocabulary lists containing fluster
The Hobbit
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "F"
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Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
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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.
The defending champion is part of a seven-way tie for the first-round lead after plotting a three-under round of 67 which encapsulated his ability to play with relentless diligence and barely a flicker of fluster.
From BBC • May 15, 2026
Every time, he managed to fluster me anyway.
From Slate • May 27, 2023
Throughout the attempts, I was also struck that nothing seemed to fluster the AI.
From Scientific American • May 25, 2023
The Terrapins were on their heels in the second quarter, when Notre Dame used a 13-0 run to take a 27-19 lead as its zone seemed to fluster Maryland.
From Washington Post • Mar. 25, 2023
In a fluster of self-consciousness he turned his back, dropped a hot coal into the nest of charcoal in the furnace and began to blow on it vigorously.
From "The Golden Goblet" by Eloise Jarvis McGraw
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.
