stutter
Americanverb (used with or without object)
-
stutters,
present (3rd person singular)
-
stuttered,
past participle, past
-
stuttering
present participle
noun
-
stutters
plural
verb
-
to speak (a word, phrase, etc) with recurring repetition of consonants, esp initial ones
-
to make (an abrupt sound) repeatedly
the gun stuttered
noun
-
the act or habit of stuttering
-
a stuttering sound
Usage
What does stutter mean? Stutter is to speak in a way in which the flow of speech is interrupted by repetitions, blocks, or prolonged sounds, as in He became so nervous that he started to stutter. Stutter also refers to this distortion of speech, as in My uncle was talking to the man with a stutter. The most commonly known form of stuttering is repetitions, either of partial words, as in I n-n-n-need water, or entire words, as in My-my-my back hurts. Two other forms of stuttering include prolonged sounds or syllables, as in Sssssshe is nice to me or blocks, which are stops when a person is struggling to get a word out. The word stammer is often used as a synonym for stutter, especially to describe temporary breaks in speech. However, stutter describes a wider range of speech distortions. Example: The girl hated speaking in front of the class because her shyness made her stutter and repeat her words.
Synonym Usage
See stammer.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
stuttersimple
-
stutterssimple
-
have stutteredperfect
-
has stutteredperfect
-
am stutteringprogressive
-
are stutteringprogressive
-
is stutteringprogressive
-
have been stutteringperfect progressive
-
has been stutteringperfect progressive
Past
-
stutteredsimple
-
had stutteredperfect
-
was stutteringprogressive
-
were stutteringprogressive
-
had been stutteringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of stutter
First recorded in 1520–30; earlier stut ( Middle English stutten “to stutter”) + -er 6; compare Dutch stotteren, Middle Low German stotern in the same sense
Explanation
If you've ever heard a young child stammer and trip over his words, you know what it means to stutter. Use the verb stutter when someone gets stuck on certain word sounds, either because she's speaking too quickly or eagerly, or because she has an actual speech disorder, also called a stutter. The word itself is somewhat onomatopoeic — a word that sounds like what it means — with its repeated t sounds. Stutter is thought to be related to the Middle Low German word stoten, "to knock or strike against," which is the way a stutterer's words sometimes sound.
Vocabulary lists containing stutter
Long Way Down
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Purple Hibiscus
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Chapter 4: Mesopotamia
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
See Examples For:
MacCallum pressed him on campaign finance and high-profile donors, and El-Sayed did not stutter or retreat.
From Salon ● Oct. 8, 2026
His nephew Griffin Bremner said he felt the plane stutter and the propellers slow down, then his uncle turned to him and said, “Griffin, we’re cooked!”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026
I need to make sure he goes the wrong way, hence the stutter, you try to send them the wrong way.
From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026
The audio has a distinctly early-2000s quality to it, reminiscent of the days when incoming calls caused nearby speakers to violently stutter.
From Slate ● Jun. 20, 2026
Sahil smiled a half smile that made my heart stutter.
From "From Twinkle, with Love" by Sandhya Menon
His approval rating is falling as his free-market overhaul stutters ahead of a difficult election next year.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 3, 2026
Stammers or stutters are also thought to affect more males than females.
From BBC ● Jan. 12, 2026
When China’s economy stutters, one major consumer class keeps spending: the country’s older households.
From Barron's ● Nov. 28, 2025
When their relationship stutters at the 10-year mark, can they find their way to a new form of happiness?
From Los Angeles Times ● May 27, 2025
My heart stutters, jumps around in concert with my butterflies, but I’m pretty sure they’re the good kind.
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
European equities fell in opening trade as a rally in technology stocks stuttered.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026
I stuttered as a child, so getting me into social situations was hard.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 7, 2026
Oil prices extended gains Wednesday as Middle East peace talks stuttered, though stocks mostly rose on the back of continued demand for all things linked to artificial intelligence.
From Barron's ● Jun. 3, 2026
While luxury consumption in Europe and the United States has been driven by pandemic-era savings, Chinese consumers have spent more frugally as the post-Covid recovery has stuttered.
From Barron's ● May 27, 2026
He cleared his throat with a small noise like chalk snapping and continued, “In September of that year, a subcommittee of Sardinian sorcerers —” He stuttered to a halt.
From "Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets" by J. K. Rowling
"This stuttering penalty seems to be the one. The goalkeepers seem to have got a march on it now," said Ian Wright on ITV.
From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026
The outflows have come as Chinese policymakers have struggled to sustain a post-pandemic economic revival, with annual growth slowing, consumption stuttering and property sector debt mounting.
From Barron's ● Jul. 3, 2026
Then researchers at Vanderbilt and Wayne State, drawing on the DNA of more than a million people, published in Nature Genetics the largest genomewide study of stuttering ever conducted.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 22, 2026
SoftBank shares have declined by more than a fifth in the last five trading sessions as speculation about its difficulty in raising a loan coincides with some stuttering in the overall narrative forAI-related technology stocks.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 10, 2026
Or was he blowing air on the stuttering fire?
From "Ophelia" by Lisa Klein
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions 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.
