Synonyms of fluttering

fluttering

verb

present participle of flutter

1

as in darting

to make an irregular series of quick, sudden movements

a lonely butterfly fluttering across the lawn

Synonyms & Similar Words

• darting
• flitting
• dancing
• flicking
• flying
• flickering
• scurrying
• zipping
• flittering
• wandering
• flirting
• sailing
• speeding
• scuttling
• sprinting
• scampering
• zooming
• dashing
• roaming
• skipping
• zinging
• scudding
• skittering
• meandering
• shooting
• rambling

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• hanging
• floating
• hovering

2

as in flapping

to move or cause to move with a striking motion

fluttered my eyelashes as I struck up a conversation with the new guy at work

Synonyms & Similar Words

• flapping
• whipping
• waving
• flailing
• swinging
• swaying
• flopping
• flicking
• flitting
• beating
• flickering
• knocking
• pounding
• banging
• thumping
• smacking
• oscillating
• fanning
• throbbing
• battering
• pulsing
• undulating
• buffeting
• spanking
• palpitating

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of fluttering

The postgame image of Brees holding his then-1-year-old first child, Baylen, as both grasped at fluttering confetti, is iconic in New Orleans. — ABC News, 4 Aug. 2026

Surrounded by hundreds of butterflies fluttering between tropical plants inside the Powell Gardens Conservatory, Heidi Boehm watched as visitors stopped, looked upward and waited for one to land nearby. — Sophia Buonpane, Kansas City Star, 1 Aug. 2026

The sky was alive with millions of fluttering shapes, congregating into clouds at random, occasionally turning into ribbons that wound through the trees. — David A. Graham, The Atlantic, 28 July 2026

Both are excellent as women emerging from a pupa of damage and tentatively fluttering their wings. — Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 22 July 2026

But Curls Ultra aren’t solely interested in resurrecting the mysticism of the past or indulging in the parties of the present, the occasional fluttering flute solo or boisterous sax line notwithstanding. — Reed Jackson, SPIN, 26 June 2026

Red, black and gold flags are flying from car bonnets and fluttering on balconies, especially on matchdays. — Sebastian Stafford-Bloor, New York Times, 26 June 2026

In Second Nature, scientists theorize that Darwin couldn’t help but impose his own heterosexual ideations on animal reproduction, mainly that animals only copulate for the purposes of reproduction, with males being the aggressors and females fluttering their eyelids behind lace fans, or something. — Rachel Brodsky, Rolling Stone, 20 June 2026

Since most butterflies live a short time, fluttering between colorful flowers for a few weeks before dying, a few rare exceptions have stumped scientists. — Ashley Strickland, CNN Money, 19 June 2026