stammer
[ stam-er ]
/ ˈstæm ər /
verb (used without object)
to speak with involuntary breaks and pauses, or with spasmodic repetitions of syllables or sounds.
verb (used with object)
to say with a stammer (often followed by out).
noun
a stammering mode of utterance.
a stammered utterance.
Nearby words
Origin of stammer
before 1000; Middle English stammeren (v.), Old English stamerian (cognate with German stammern), equivalent to stam stammering + -erian -er6; akin to Old Norse stamma to stammer, Gothic stams stammering
SYNONYMS FOR stammer
1 pause, hesitate, falter. Stammer, stutter mean to speak with some form of difficulty. Stammer, the general term, suggests a speech difficulty that results in broken or inarticulate sounds and sometimes in complete stoppage of speech; it may be temporary, caused by sudden excitement, confusion, embarrassment, or other emotion, or it may be so deep-seated as to require special treatment for its correction. Stutter, the parallel term preferred in technical usage, designates a broad range of defects that produce spasmodic interruptions of the speech rhythm, repetitions, or prolongations of sounds or syllables: The child's stutter was no mere stammer of embarrassment.
Related formsstam·mer·er, nounstam·mer·ing·ly, adverbun·stam·mer·ing, adjectiveun·stam·mer·ing·ly, adverb
Can be confusedstammer stutter (see synonym study at the current entry)
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for stammer
British Dictionary definitions for stammer
stammer
/ (ˈstæmə) /
verb
to speak or say (something) in a hesitant way, esp as a result of a speech disorder or through fear, stress, etc
noun
a speech disorder characterized by involuntary repetitions and hesitations
Derived Formsstammerer, nounstammering, noun, adjectivestammeringly, adverb
Word Origin for stammer
Old English stamerian; related to Old Saxon stamarōn, Old High German stamm
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
Word Origin and History for stammer
stammer
Old English stamerian, from West Germanic *stamrojan (cf. Old Norse stammr, Old High German stam, Gothic stamms "stammering," Middle Dutch stameren, German stammeln "to stammer," Old Frisian and German stumm "dumb"), from PIE root *stam-, *stum- "check, impede" (see stem (v.)).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Medicine definitions for stammer
stammer
[ stăm′ər ]
n.
A speech disorder characterized by hesitation and repetition of sounds, or by mispronunciation or transposition of certain consonants, especially l, r, and s.
v.
To speak with a stammer.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.