stutter
verb /ˈstʌtə(r)/
/ˈstʌtər/
Verb Forms
| present simple I / you / we / they stutter | /ˈstʌtə(r)/ /ˈstʌtər/ |
| he / she / it stutters | /ˈstʌtəz/ /ˈstʌtərz/ |
| past simple stuttered | /ˈstʌtəd/ /ˈstʌtərd/ |
| past participle stuttered | /ˈstʌtəd/ /ˈstʌtərd/ |
| -ing form stuttering | /ˈstʌtərɪŋ/ /ˈstʌtərɪŋ/ |
- [transitive, intransitive] to have difficulty speaking because you cannot stop yourself from repeating the first sound of some words several times synonym stammer
- + speech ‘W-w-what?’ he stuttered.
- stutter (something) I managed to stutter a reply.
- [intransitive] (of a vehicle or an engine) to move or start with difficulty, making short sharp noises or movements
- The car stuttered along in first gear.
Word Originlate 16th cent. (as a verb): frequentative of dialect stut, of Germanic origin; related to German stossen ‘strike against’.