MEANING
Produce broken, spitting noises or bursts, often while struggling to speak or run smoothly.
Use it for
Words that belong together
- splutter with indignation
- engine splutters
On the page
The engine spluttered twice before settling into a low hum.
Nearby words
Word forms
- Base
- splutter
- Past tense
- spluttered
- Past participle
- spluttered
- Present participle
- spluttering
Full tense & aspect guide
- Present
- splutter
- Present continuous
- am/is/are spluttering
- Present perfect
- have/has spluttered
- Present perfect continuous
- have/has been spluttering
- Past
- spluttered
- Past continuous
- was/were spluttering
- Past perfect
- had spluttered
- Past perfect continuous
- had been spluttering
- Future
- will splutter
- Future continuous
- will be spluttering
- Future perfect
- will have spluttered
- Future perfect continuous
- will have been spluttering
Choose the auxiliary that agrees with your subject. These are constructions of one word, not separate entries.
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Usage notes
Primary category: sensory / description. Forms: splutter; splutters; spluttered; spluttered; spluttering Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings. Established modern English lexical item. No separate regional spelling or grammatical inflection entry. Writing functions: description. Commonness: moderately common. Third-person singular: splutters.
Practice this word in a sentenceYour margin notes
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