flutter

UK: /ˈflʌtə^r/ US: /ˈflʌtɚ/ ,(flut′ər)

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025

flut•ter /ˈflʌtɚ/   v. 

1. to (cause to) wave or flap about: [no object]
   Banners fluttered in the breeze.
   [~ + object]
   The breeze fluttered the banners.
2. to flap the wings rapidly or fly with flapping movements:
   [no object] The pigeons fluttered away.
3. to move in quick, irregular motions:
   [no object] fluttered around the office looking for something to do.
4. to beat rapidly:
   [no object] Her heart fluttered for a moment.

n. [countable]

5. a fluttering movement:
   a flutter of wings.
6. a state of nervous excitement or mental agitation:
   [usually: singular] in a flutter of anticipation.
7. a stir;
   flurry:
   [usually: singular] That news caused quite a flutter.

flut•ter•y, adj., -i•er, -i•est. 

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

flut•ter  (flut′ər), v.i. 

1. to wave, flap, or toss about:
   Banners fluttered in the breeze.
2. to flap the wings rapidly;
   fly with flapping movements.
3. to move in quick, irregular motions;
   vibrate.
4. to beat rapidly, as the heart.
5. to be tremulous or agitated.
6. to go with irregular motions or aimless course:
   to flutter back and forth.

v.t. 

7. to cause to flutter;
   vibrate;
   agitate.
8. to throw into nervous or tremulous excitement;
   cause mental agitation;
   confuse.

n. 

9. a fluttering movement:
   He made little nervous flutters with his hands.
10. a state of nervous excitement or mental agitation:
    a flutter of anticipation.
11. Sport See flutter kick. 
12. Sound Reproduction [Audio.] a variation in pitch resulting from rapid fluctuations in the speed of a recording. Cf. wow² (def. 1).
13. British Terms [Chiefly Brit.] a small wager or speculative investment.

• Middle English floteren, Old English floterian, frequentative of flotian to float bef. 1000

flut′ter•er, n. 
flut′ter•ing•ly, adv. 
Synonyms

• 2. See fly ¹.
• 10. flurry, twitter, stir, dither.

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

flutter / ˈflʌtə/ verb

1. to wave or cause to wave rapidly; flap
2. (intransitive) (of birds, butterflies, etc) to flap the wings
3. (intransitive) to move, esp downwards, with an irregular motion
4. (intransitive) (of the auricles of the heart) to beat abnormally rapidly, esp in a regular rhythm
5. to be or make nervous or restless
6. (intransitive) to move about restlessly

noun

1. a quick flapping or vibrating motion
2. a state of nervous excitement or confusion
3. excited interest; sensation; stir
4. a modest bet or wager
5. 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
6. a slow variation in pitch in a sound-reproducing system, similar to wow but occurring at higher frequencies
7. a potentially dangerous oscillation of an aircraft, or part of an aircraft, caused by the interaction of aerodynamic forces, structural elastic reactions, and inertia
8. Also called: flutter tonguing a method of sounding a wind instrument, esp the flute, with a rolling movement of the tongue

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

ˈflutterer noun