flutter

[ fluht-er ]

/ ˈflʌt ər /

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See synonyms for: flutter / fluttered / fluttering on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object)

to wave, flap, or toss about: Banners fluttered in the breeze.

to flap the wings rapidly; fly with flapping movements.

to move in quick, irregular motions; vibrate.

to beat rapidly, as the heart.

to be tremulous or agitated.

to go with irregular motions or aimless course: to flutter back and forth.

verb (used with object)

to cause to flutter; vibrate; agitate.

to throw into nervous or tremulous excitement; cause mental agitation; confuse.

noun

a fluttering movement: He made little nervous flutters with his hands.

a state of nervous excitement or mental agitation: a flutter of anticipation.

flutter kick.

Audio. a variation in pitch resulting from rapid fluctuations in the speed of a recording.Compare wow² (def. 1).

Chiefly British. a small wager or speculative investment.

OTHER WORDS FOR flutter

10 flurry, twitter, stir, dither.

See synonyms for flutter on Thesaurus.com

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Origin of flutter

First recorded before 1000; Middle English floteren, Old English floterian, frequentative of flotian “to float”

synonym study for flutter

2. See fly².

OTHER WORDS FROM flutter

flut·ter·er, nounflut·ter·ing·ly, adverbun·flut·tered, adjectiveun·flut·ter·ing, adjective

Words nearby flutter

fluted, fluter, flutey, fluting, flutist, flutter, flutterboard, flutter-fibrillation, flutter kick, flutter mill, flutter wheel

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

How to use flutter in a sentence

Put loudness and slowness together, though, and the results tend to feel hefty and overgrown in our mind’s ear, even though we’re only experiencing a weightless flutter of air.
Eyehategod’s high-gravity metal can connect you to the heavens|Chris Richards|March 12, 2021|Washington Post
There are ghosts that may flutter above the stage at the Met.
When Stalin Met Lady Macbeth|Brian Moynahan|November 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Farrow smiles and butterflies flutter and stars shoot across the night sky.
Do Not Defy Ronan Farrow’s Power Pout|Tim Teeman|February 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It started off small: a hint of annoyance here, a flutter of incredulity there.
Just Kill Mr. Bates Already! How to Save ‘Downton Abbey’|Andrew Romano|February 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST

There are no red carpets and you just flutter about watching films.
Carey Mulligan, Star of ‘Inside Llewyn Davis,’ on the Coen Brothers, ‘N Sync Fandom, Lorde, and More|Marlow Stern|December 3, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Just as suddenly she was gone, leaving a flutter of red curtains.
Nepal Old and New: Kathmandu Valley’s Royal Cities Get a Facelift|Condé Nast Traveler|August 19, 2013|DAILY BEAST
They generally flutter for two or three minutes about the most elevated point of any object, and then disappear.
A Woman's Journey Round the World|Ida Pfeiffer
Oh, Ive had it out and felt behind it, urged Miss Carrington, all of a flutter now.
The Girls of Central High on the Stage|Gertrude W. Morrison
There was a note in her voice of such absolute sincerity, mingled with fear, that he opened his arms and let her flutter away.
A Butterfly on the Wheel|Cyril Arthur Edward Ranger Gull
It is why they have black wings and tails, why they flutter so with joy, and why they never finish their song.
Stories the Iroquois Tell Their Children|Mabel Powers
He half expected a check to fall fluttering to the floor; but alas, there was not a single flutter.
Love's Pilgrimage|Upton Sinclair

British Dictionary definitions for flutter

flutter

/ (ˈflʌtə) /

verb

to wave or cause to wave rapidly; flap

(intr) (of birds, butterflies, etc) to flap the wings

(intr) to move, esp downwards, with an irregular motion

(intr) pathol (of the auricles of the heart) to beat abnormally rapidly, esp in a regular rhythm

to be or make nervous or restless

(intr) to move about restlessly

swimming to cause (the legs) to move up and down in a flutter kick or (of the legs) to move in this way

(tr) British informal to wager or gamble (a small amount of money)

noun

a quick flapping or vibrating motion

a state of nervous excitement or confusion

excited interest; sensation; stir

British informal a modest bet or wager

pathol an abnormally rapid beating of the auricles of the heart (200 to 400 beats per minute), esp in a regular rhythm, sometimes resulting in heart block

electronics a slow variation in pitch in a sound-reproducing system, similar to wow but occurring at higher frequencies

a potentially dangerous oscillation of an aircraft, or part of an aircraft, caused by the interaction of aerodynamic forces, structural elastic reactions, and inertia

swimming See flutter kick

Also called: flutter tonguing music a method of sounding a wind instrument, esp the flute, with a rolling movement of the tongue

Derived forms of flutter

flutterer, nounflutteringly, adverb

Word Origin for flutter

Old English floterian to float to and fro; related to German flattern; see float

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

Medical definitions for flutter

flutter

[ flŭt′ər ]

Abnormally rapid pulsation, especially of the atria or ventricles of the heart.

flutter

OTHER WORDS FOR flutter

Origin of flutter

synonym study for flutter

OTHER WORDS FROM flutter

Words nearby flutter

Words related to flutter

How to use flutter in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for flutter

Derived forms of flutter

Word Origin for flutter

Medical definitions for flutter