as in to drool
to speak rapidly, inarticulately, and usually unintelligibly
she was so shocked that, for a moment, all she could do was sputter
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of sputter
Healthcare, recently the principal engine of American job growth, sputtered, shedding 28,000 jobs.
—
Max Klaver, Miami Herald, 10 Mar. 2026
With the majority of their big-league starting lineup competing in the World Baseball Classic, the offense is sputtering big-time.
—Gabrielle Starr, Boston Herald, 6 Mar. 2026
The major stock indexes mirrored Bitcoin, rallying in the middle of the week only to sputter on Friday morning.
—Carlos Garcia, Fortune, 6 Mar. 2026
After some false starts, a windfall came when David Geffen, the longtime contemporary art collector, made his historic pledge in 2017, injecting some excitement into a campaign that had been sputtering.
—Nate Freeman, Vanity Fair, 6 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for sputter
Max Klaver, Miami Herald, 10 Mar. 2026
With the majority of their big-league starting lineup competing in the World Baseball Classic, the offense is sputtering big-time.
—Gabrielle Starr, Boston Herald, 6 Mar. 2026
The major stock indexes mirrored Bitcoin, rallying in the middle of the week only to sputter on Friday morning.
—Carlos Garcia, Fortune, 6 Mar. 2026
After some false starts, a windfall came when David Geffen, the longtime contemporary art collector, made his historic pledge in 2017, injecting some excitement into a campaign that had been sputtering.
—Nate Freeman, Vanity Fair, 6 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for sputter
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sputter
Verb
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These plants contain cardiac glycosides, which can cause unpleasant symptoms for dogs and cats alike, such as drooling, diarrhea, abdominal pain, abnormal heart rhythm, and even some neurologic signs.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
24 Mar. 2026
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Chewing on the bulbs can cause severe vomiting and diarrhea, profuse drooling and burns to the mouth.—
Lauren Jarvis-Gibson,
Miami Herald,
24 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The march continues to weave throughout the Plaza on its way back to Mill Creek Park as people shout various chants, blare music, pound on handheld drums and blow whistles.—
Jenna Ebbers,
Kansas City Star,
28 Mar. 2026
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Malinin shouted and punched the air with relief after finishing the skate.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
28 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Hardcore Survivor fans love to discuss and debate the intricacies of the game and their favorite seasons and winners in the same way that sports fans enjoy chattering nonstop about their teams.—
Dalton Ross,
Entertainment Weekly,
25 Feb. 2026
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This is the shelter’s busiest season, making for the film’s most vibrant, chattering section, and Hélène adapts well to the rhythm and volume of whatever company rolls in, while occasionally retreating to the woods for some respite.—
Guy Lodge,
Variety,
22 Feb. 2026
Verb
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In fact, the director was egging me on, encouraging me to go further with the hunching and muttering.—
Andrew Martin,
Vogue,
9 Mar. 2026
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Old friend Daniel Vladar was spectacular in making 26 saves, several of which had Morgan Geekie (nine total shots, five on net, two blocked, two misses) muttering to himself.—
Steve Conroy,
Boston Herald,
28 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Plus, the star sat for an interview about all things Hannah with Call Her Daddy host Alex Cooper, chatted with parents Billy Ray and Tish Cyrus, and recalled everything from Taylor Swift’s cameo in the Hannah Montana movie to touring with The Jonas Brothers.—
Hannah Dailey,
Billboard,
24 Mar. 2026
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This is the same pair who were just chatting in the crew mess.—
Rafaela Bassili,
Vulture,
24 Mar. 2026
Verb
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But when the disheveled, withdrawn ex-friend shows up in the locker room gibbering about an evil spirit, Sam is mortified, impulsively knocking to the ground the grungy-looking Mason jar that Tamira has been carrying around.—
Dennis Harvey,
Variety,
18 Sep. 2023
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For a while, police interest bent toward a Phud who had been warned he might be eliminated from the program, who had seemed almost exultant about the fire and gibbered gleefully about the media spotlight.—
New York Times,
New York Times,
13 Apr. 2018
Verb
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The disruption has rattled global energy markets, reigniting inflationary pressures stemming from surging energy prices.—
Anniek Bao,
CNBC,
25 Mar. 2026
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OpenAI's unveiling of Sora in 2024 rattled many in the entertainment industry, who quickly expressed concerns that the model's ability to easily and rapidly generate relatively high-quality video from text would displace human creators.—
Jared Perlo,
NBC news,
24 Mar. 2026
Verb
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It’s equipped with a 75Hz refresh rate and AMD FreeSync technology to eliminate image tearing and stuttering, ensuring even fast action scenes remain seamless.—
Juhi Wadia,
PC Magazine,
27 Mar. 2026
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After stuttering through trade rumours last week, Matthew Knies had another noticeable game Saturday night with an assist.—
Joshua Kloke,
New York Times,
15 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Sputter.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sputter. Accessed 30 Mar. 2026.
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