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
Joe Kozlowski, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Oct. 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
While things got too close for comfort at times, the Hurricanes played through raining conditions and a sputtering offensive performance to dispatch the Florida Gators 26-7.
—Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 21 Sep. 2025
The difference there is that Keanu Reeves is unflappable, while Odenkirk has a sputtering quality to him that adds a comedic layer to his bloody lash-outs.
—Katie Rife, IndieWire, 9 Sep. 2025
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
But the extent to which its defense is sputtering may be a surprise.
—Robert Marvi, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 Sep. 2025
Everything is sputtering now for the Mets, who haven’t drawn a walk since Wednesday.
—Tyler Kepner, New York Times, 13 Sep. 2025
His arrival home each night is announced by his sputtering motorcycle and his drunken stumbling up the stairs.
—Adam Solomons, IndieWire, 4 Sep. 2025
That this continues after years of California officials proposing law after law to rein in the industry leaves this scribe, and many others, sputtering with rage.
—Teri Sforza, Oc Register, 29 Aug. 2025
While the economy’s growth in the second quarter can be mostly attributed to trade swings and consumers, a look under the hood shows that underlying momentum is sputtering.
—Bryan Mena, CNN Money, 28 Aug. 2025
But if the reform process lags and if Bangladesh's sputtering economy doesn't improve, the public's patience could start to wear thin for an administration that for now enjoys ample support.
—Michael Kugelman, NPR, 21 Dec. 2024
Adjective
On the Dodgers’ side of things, Roberts has already made some tweaks to his sputtering lineup.
—Joe Kozlowski, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Oct. 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
While things got too close for comfort at times, the Hurricanes played through raining conditions and a sputtering offensive performance to dispatch the Florida Gators 26-7.
—Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 21 Sep. 2025
The difference there is that Keanu Reeves is unflappable, while Odenkirk has a sputtering quality to him that adds a comedic layer to his bloody lash-outs.
—Katie Rife, IndieWire, 9 Sep. 2025
Verb
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
But the extent to which its defense is sputtering may be a surprise.
—Robert Marvi, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 Sep. 2025
Everything is sputtering now for the Mets, who haven’t drawn a walk since Wednesday.
—Tyler Kepner, New York Times, 13 Sep. 2025
His arrival home each night is announced by his sputtering motorcycle and his drunken stumbling up the stairs.
—Adam Solomons, IndieWire, 4 Sep. 2025
That this continues after years of California officials proposing law after law to rein in the industry leaves this scribe, and many others, sputtering with rage.
—Teri Sforza, Oc Register, 29 Aug. 2025
While the economy’s growth in the second quarter can be mostly attributed to trade swings and consumers, a look under the hood shows that underlying momentum is sputtering.
—Bryan Mena, CNN Money, 28 Aug. 2025
But if the reform process lags and if Bangladesh's sputtering economy doesn't improve, the public's patience could start to wear thin for an administration that for now enjoys ample support.
—Michael Kugelman, NPR, 21 Dec. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sputtering
Verb
-
For the chattering women, by contrast, the tool of power is writing; and for people who were almost certainly illiterate, the writing takes on almost magical characteristics.—
JSTOR Daily,
JSTOR Daily,
31 Oct. 2025
-
Weiss, the entrepreneurial and opinionated co-founder of The Free Press website, is an irresistible story to the media chattering classes.—
Brian Stelter,
CNN Money,
31 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
The defense is faltering, the offensive line is a mess, and no one knows what McCarthy is going to do.—
Alec Lewis,
New York Times,
1 Nov. 2025
-
Lebanon’s faltering banking system.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
17 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Then, a man stood up and started shouting at Harris.—
Kate Plummer,
MSNBC Newsweek,
24 Oct. 2025
-
His clips are pretty rudimentary tributes to guys like Thomas Sankara, the former Prime Minister of Burkina Faso, shouting them out with highlight reels and songs by 100 gecs and Jersey club collective TwerkNation28.—
Kieran Press-Reynolds,
Pitchfork,
24 Oct. 2025
Verb
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According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, CWD can take months to years for symptoms to appear, which could include drastic weight loss, stumbling or lack of coordination, drooling and listlessness.—
Caroline Neal,
Louisville Courier Journal,
30 Oct. 2025
-
Naturally, the post attracted over 16,000 comments of women drooling over him.—
Essence,
Essence,
20 Oct. 2025
Verb
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While chatting about Leila’s wedding plans on Live with Kelly and Mark, the Sisters Loved and Treasured author, 65, revealed that her daughter, 26, plans to wed her fiancé Sylvain Gricourt in two separate ceremonies.—
Kimberlee Speakman,
PEOPLE,
24 Oct. 2025
-
Video shared on social media showed Bell smiling, chatting with fans and taking photos.—
Lisa Respers France,
CNN Money,
23 Oct. 2025
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
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Minnesota set the tone for how this game would unfold in the first quarter, with a goal of rattling Goff and speeding up his internal clock.—
Colton Pouncy,
New York Times,
3 Nov. 2025
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But any agreement reached will be just one touchstone in a thorny and volatile great power rivalry between the world’s superpower democracy and an authoritarian China, whose growing military assertiveness under Xi in the East and South China Seas is rattling US allies in the region.—
Betsy Klein,
CNN Money,
30 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
The headline asks the world to protect 30 percent of land and oceans by 2030, while cutting pollution and halting habitat loss.—
William Jones,
USA Today,
6 Nov. 2025
-
President Woodrow Wilson enacted the Cloture Rule in 1917, requiring a two-thirds majority vote to pass legislation and prevent prolonged speeches from halting debate.—
Callum Sutherland,
Time,
3 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Sputtering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sputtering. Accessed 9 Nov. 2025.
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