Showing results for "sputtering"

• present participle of sputter.

sputtering

American  

[spuht-er-ing] / ˈspʌt ər ɪŋ /

noun

1. Engineering, Electronics. a process that uses ions of an inert gas to dislodge atoms from the surface of a crystalline material, the atoms then being electrically deposited to form an extremely thin coating on a glass, metal, plastic, or other surface.

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Other Word Forms

• unsputtering
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of sputtering

First recorded in 1900–05; sputter + -ing ¹

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

sputtering

To put things another way, the actual figures show the U.S. economy to be sputtering, and the “vibe economy” as measured by consumer confidence is doing even worse.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 13, 2026

China’s economy has been sputtering for a years, with consumers especially reluctant to spend, hurting some of those companies.

From Barron's ● May 31, 2026

GDP rebounded in the first quarter and grew at a solid 2% annual rate after sputtering at the end of last year.

From MarketWatch ● May 2, 2026

But what’s extra notable about the sputtering tech partnerships of the 2020s is how baldly they smack of desperation.

From Slate ● Apr. 16, 2026

She came to in seconds, sputtering and frantically wiping her mouth to get rid of the horrendous taste.

From "The Interrupted Tale" by Maryrose Wood