as in muttering
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as in chattering
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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Recent Examples of sputtering
MSNBC Newsweek, 5 Dec. 2025
Flat out, when the Bills’ offense was sputtering, the defense stole the game right from the Steelers’ grasp.
—Joe Buscaglia, New York Times, 1 Dec. 2025
Longi team applied a first tin oxide (SnOx) buffer layer to protect the perovskite and transport layers during the transparent conducting oxide sputtering process, performed via atomic layer deposition (ALD).
—Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 27 Nov. 2025
Out of the ashes of a sputtering career as a music journalist came this new path as a screenwriter.
—Cameron Crowe, HollywoodReporter, 24 Oct. 2025
Ingberg, 23, drove the sputtering car to Akeley, dropped it off at a mechanic and hopped in Hansen’s squad car for a ride back to his home in Wadena.
—Alex Haddon, Twin Cities, 13 Oct. 2025
Then Waller held forth on the economy and the sputtering labor market.
—Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 10 Oct. 2025
So, too, is finding the right response to Americans’ sputtering adoption of electric vehicles, and a path to profitability for Ford Model e, the group’s loss-making EV division.
—Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson, semafor.com, 3 Oct. 2025
As expected, the Lions defense played exceptionally well in the team's 34-10 win over Cleveland, forcing three turnovers and limiting a sputtering Browns offense to just 10 points.
—Christian Romo, Freep.com, 29 Sep. 2025
Joe Reid, Vulture, 16 Jan. 2026
The only constant is Mount Etna, looming off to one side, at times sputtering out smoke, ash, and short bursts of lava.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 10 Jan. 2026
After sputtering at the beginning of 2026, the economy grew rapidly in the middle two quarters and is on pace to accelerate at a 3% pace in the fourth quarter, according to preliminary data from the Atlanta Fed.
—Jeff Cox, CNBC, 3 Jan. 2026
The fact that Stockton had to keep doing that was a reflection of the offense around him sputtering.
—Seth Emerson, New York Times, 2 Jan. 2026
The offense was sputtering more often than not for most of the Hurricanes’ first-round College Football Playoff matchup against the Texas A&M Aggies, a combination of swirling wind and a stout defense making things difficult.
—Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 23 Dec. 2025
As the holiday season approaches, Americans dipping into savings, scouring for bargains and feeling like the overall economy is sputtering, a new AP-NORC poll finds.
—Paul Wiseman, Fortune, 18 Dec. 2025
The Niners’ defense is reeling, and the offense is sputtering.
—Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 18 Oct. 2025
In August, a single-engine Piper PA-28 crash landed on southbound Interstate 805 in Sorrento Valley after the pilot noticed the engine was sputtering and losing power.
—Teri Figueroa, San Diego Union-Tribune, 30 Sep. 2025
Adjective
The climate alarm machine—powered by the twin engines of moral panic and groupthink homogeneity—is sputtering.
—MSNBC Newsweek, 5 Dec. 2025
Flat out, when the Bills’ offense was sputtering, the defense stole the game right from the Steelers’ grasp.
—Joe Buscaglia, New York Times, 1 Dec. 2025
Longi team applied a first tin oxide (SnOx) buffer layer to protect the perovskite and transport layers during the transparent conducting oxide sputtering process, performed via atomic layer deposition (ALD).
—Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 27 Nov. 2025
Out of the ashes of a sputtering career as a music journalist came this new path as a screenwriter.
—Cameron Crowe, HollywoodReporter, 24 Oct. 2025
Ingberg, 23, drove the sputtering car to Akeley, dropped it off at a mechanic and hopped in Hansen’s squad car for a ride back to his home in Wadena.
—Alex Haddon, Twin Cities, 13 Oct. 2025
Then Waller held forth on the economy and the sputtering labor market.
—Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 10 Oct. 2025
So, too, is finding the right response to Americans’ sputtering adoption of electric vehicles, and a path to profitability for Ford Model e, the group’s loss-making EV division.
—Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson, semafor.com, 3 Oct. 2025
As expected, the Lions defense played exceptionally well in the team's 34-10 win over Cleveland, forcing three turnovers and limiting a sputtering Browns offense to just 10 points.
—Christian Romo, Freep.com, 29 Sep. 2025
Verb
When the time came for Alan Cumming to cease deliberations, Michael was reduced to sputtering epithets in random sequences.
—Joe Reid, Vulture, 16 Jan. 2026
The only constant is Mount Etna, looming off to one side, at times sputtering out smoke, ash, and short bursts of lava.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 10 Jan. 2026
After sputtering at the beginning of 2026, the economy grew rapidly in the middle two quarters and is on pace to accelerate at a 3% pace in the fourth quarter, according to preliminary data from the Atlanta Fed.
—Jeff Cox, CNBC, 3 Jan. 2026
The fact that Stockton had to keep doing that was a reflection of the offense around him sputtering.
—Seth Emerson, New York Times, 2 Jan. 2026
The offense was sputtering more often than not for most of the Hurricanes’ first-round College Football Playoff matchup against the Texas A&M Aggies, a combination of swirling wind and a stout defense making things difficult.
—Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 23 Dec. 2025
As the holiday season approaches, Americans dipping into savings, scouring for bargains and feeling like the overall economy is sputtering, a new AP-NORC poll finds.
—Paul Wiseman, Fortune, 18 Dec. 2025
The Niners’ defense is reeling, and the offense is sputtering.
—Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 18 Oct. 2025
In August, a single-engine Piper PA-28 crash landed on southbound Interstate 805 in Sorrento Valley after the pilot noticed the engine was sputtering and losing power.
—Teri Figueroa, San Diego Union-Tribune, 30 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sputtering
Verb
-
Voices chattering in Yiddish mingle with clucking chickens, crowing roosters and accordion music drifting through a bustling outdoor market.—
Leslie Katz,
Forbes.com,
21 Jan. 2026
-
Now Carmelo can be seen at every Syracuse game, chattering constantly to Kiyan and his teammates.—
Lindsay Schnell,
New York Times,
6 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Against Gauff, Svitolina displayed relentless aggression, attacking the American’s faltering forehand.—
Merlisa Lawrence Corbett,
Forbes.com,
27 Jan. 2026
-
The company’s aging lineup and slow-selling Cybertruck faces growing competition from fresher EVs offered by mainstream carmakers, while the loss of federal tax credits for EV purchasers in the US has put more pressure on demand that already was faltering.—
Bloomberg,
Mercury News,
22 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
During the struggle, an unidentified Border Patrol agent can be heard repeatedly shouting that the man was armed, according to the report.—
Greg Wehner , Matt Finn,
FOXNews.com,
29 Jan. 2026
-
The neighbors gathering, shouting, whistling, screaming for help… help that is a message of love but like all love powerless to prevent the hurt from happening.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
28 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Duff wrote alongside a drooling-face emoji.—
Allison DeGrushe,
Entertainment Weekly,
9 Jan. 2026
-
But pets who eat poinsettia flowers or leaves might develop drooling, vomiting or diarrhea.—
Phaedra Trethan,
USA Today,
12 Dec. 2025
Verb
-
The couple was seen chatting, smiling and greeting their tablemates at the awards show.—
Breanne L. Heldman,
PEOPLE,
12 Jan. 2026
-
There was nothing more thrilling than the early days of instant messaging online, chatting with your friends or your crush, and coming up with away messages.—
Kara Nesvig,
Parents,
11 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
The stop-motion digital series about a jolly, mumbling, pint-size cook serves up a big slice of serotonin.—
Sonal Dutt,
PEOPLE,
24 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Look past the saber rattling and campaign rhetoric.—
Brian Jones,
Oc Register,
6 Jan. 2026
-
Roughly one week later, Johnson reportedly heard the metal cage rattling from inside his home but later realized that the wrong bear had been captured.—
Bonny Chu,
FOXNews.com,
31 Dec. 2025
Adjective
-
The storm had dropped over a foot of snow across a 1,300-mile swath from Arkansas to New England, halting traffic, canceling thousands of flights and triggering wide school closures Monday.—
Dallas Morning News,
Dallas Morning News,
27 Jan. 2026
-
The storm continued into Friday, halting transportation, businesses and schools statewide for two days.—
Kaycee Sloan,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
23 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Sputtering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sputtering. Accessed 30 Jan. 2026.
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