stammering 1 of 2

adjective

as in muttering

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stammering

2 of 2

verb

present participle of stammer
as in stuttering
to speak with many pauses and repetitions He stammers when he's nervous.

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Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of stammering
Adjective
Even characters like Lauren Domingue — sweet, stammering, fearful Lauren, who is not boring, and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise! — Ben Rosenstock, Vulture, 27 Sep. 2025 The stammering old man is trying to be a Tamburlaine. — Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 8 Sep. 2025
Verb
After all, some in the party are still smarting about the 2008 presidential primary and more than a few are still stammering about the 2016 one. — Philip Elliott, Time, 3 Aug. 2026 Probst glides through his dialogue for the day in a single take, without stopping or even stammering. — David Canfield, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stammering
  1. stuttering
  2. mumbling
  3. sputtering
  4. faltering
  5. hesitant
  6. halting
  7. inarticulate
Adjective
  • Windows Vista and its early WDDM woes had reduced my previously badass main PC with two Nvidia 7900GT cards in SLI to a stuttering BSOD-spitting mess, and the future of Microsoft OSes looked bleak—Windows 7 wouldn’t be along to change the situation for years.
    — Lee Hutchinson, ArsTechnica, 6 May 2026
Definition of stuttering
Verb
  • Later that day, Rowley was drenched in sweat, rocking back and forth and mumbling incoherently as the poison – later identified as Novichok, a Russian nerve agent – took hold of him, too.
    — Faith Karimi, CNN Money, 11 July 2026
  • Next up, maybe lawmakers can do something about overly soft, mumbling dialogue preceded by deafening explosions.
    — Winston Cho, HollywoodReporter, 25 June 2026
Definition of mumbling
Adjective
  • About a minute later, Guardado began breathing heavily, followed by some sputtering and twitching.
    — KIM CHANDLER, Arkansas Online, 6 Nov. 2026
  • About a minute into the injection, Guardado began breathing heavily, followed by some sputtering and twitching that lasted about another minute.
    — David Fischer, The Orlando Sentinel, 5 Nov. 2026
Definition of sputtering
Adjective
  • But after 10 years and nearly a billion dollars spent on water quality projects and programs, Vermont’s cleanup effort is faltering.
    — Jonathan Mingle, ProPublica, 4 Nov. 2026
  • The star rocker then insists the lake name change was a diversion from a faltering presidency.
    — Etan Vlessing, HollywoodReporter, 29 Oct. 2026
Definition of faltering
Adjective
  • For the second straight week, the usually capable running quarterback was hesitant to use his legs, going for just 7 yards on two carries.
    — David Furones, Sun Sentinel, 8 Nov. 2026
  • On that play, Mahomes dislocated his kneecap — and the Chiefs have been hesitant to run that play ever since.
    — Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 8 Nov. 2026
Definition of hesitant
Adjective
  • In their comically halting reconnection, Roberto finds a way to navigate grief.
    — John Hopewell, Variety, 13 Nov. 2026
  • Chipmaking hubs Taiwan and South Korea saw steep declines, the former suffering record losses and the latter halting trading after an 8% wipeout.
    — semafor.com, semafor.com, 6 Nov. 2026
Definition of halting
Adjective
  • The cloud was blank and inarticulate, a monolith with no secrets to reveal to any of its human witnesses.
    — Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 11 Sep. 2026
  • Just as between them William James and Michael Oakeshott told us that there is no such thing as unmediated experience, so, surely, there is no such thing as inarticulate thought.
    — Richard Lansdown, The New York Review of Books, 25 June 2026
Definition of inarticulate

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Cite this Entry

“Stammering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stammering. Accessed 15 Nov. 2026.

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