disfluency

noun

dis·​flu·​en·​cy dis-ˈflü-ən(t)-sē How to pronounce disfluency (audio)
variants or dysfluency
1
: an involuntary disruption in the flow of speech that may occur during normal childhood development of spoken language or during normal adult speech but is most often symptomatic of a speech impairment
especially : a disorder of vocal communication that is marked by frequent involuntary disruption or blocking of speech (as by repetition of all or part of a word or by prolonging vocal sounds) and typically has an onset during childhood : stuttering
2
: an act or instance of disfluency : stutter
disfluent adjective
or dysfluent
a disfluent child
dysfluent speech

Examples of disfluency in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
While 2 percent of children stutter, according to the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, most outgrow this disfluency, often without intervention. Anna Leahy, Washington Post, 20 Jan. 2023 Overall, these mixed results warrant further research into the relationship between font disfluency and memory. Carla Delgado, Discover Magazine, 9 Oct. 2021 Google is constantly updating its Google Assistant with new voice samples to better understand people with accents or speech disfluencies. Kevin Wheeler, USA TODAY, 6 Jan. 2020

Word History

First Known Use

1961, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of disfluency was in 1961

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Cite this Entry

“Disfluency.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/disfluency. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.

Medical Definition

disfluency

noun
dis·​flu·​en·​cy
variants or dysfluency
plural disfluencies
1
: an involuntary disruption in the flow of speech that may occur during normal childhood development of spoken language or during normal adult speech but is most often symptomatic of a speech impairment
especially : a disorder of vocal communication that is marked by frequent involuntary disruption or blocking of speech (as by repetition of all or part of a word or by prolonging vocal sounds) and typically has an onset during childhood : stuttering
2
: an act or instance of disfluency : stutter
disfluent adjective
or dysfluent
a disfluent child
dysfluent speech
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