(of aperson) tospeakin aquickandconfusedway,producingshort,unclearnoisesbecause ofsurprise,anger, etc., or (of apersonor thing) to make aseriesofnoisessimilarto this
[+ speech]"But, er ... when, um, ... how?" he spluttered.“但是，呃……什么时候，嗯……怎样？”他语无伦次地说道。
She took toobigagulpofwhiskyandstartedtocoughand splutter.她那一口威士忌喝得太多，开始咳嗽起来，嘴里噗噗地吐着气。
Examplesofsplutter
splutter
Here, too, the organ joins the orchestra in the opening mêlée, but the sound evaporates instantly, leaving a lone bass line tosplutterout on tuba and organ.
From theCambridge English Corpus
Substratum heaved and spluttered with the primal energy of a pool of lava and as little a sense of direction.
From theCambridge English Corpus
The flame of tribalism seems to flicker andsplutterat times.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
The concept is breathtaking in its originality and it is important that the development should not lurch andsplutter.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
He was embarrassed, spluttered apologies and started to back away from me.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
There is nothing more off-putting than trying to make a speech on an important subject and hearing someone coughing and spluttering behind.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
The disputes which it has temporarily smotheredsplutteron beneath the surface, and could at any time erupt again.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
It is rather like the last few spluttering turns of an extinguishing catherine wheel.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
We are getting a lastsplutterof compulsion tonight.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
Even so, the writing was on the wall as the economy lost impetus and the boom spluttered to stagnation.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
I spluttered something about being a professional person, to which he asked what a professional housewife like me was doing being a mayor.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
By implication—indeed, he spluttered it out explicitly—his forecast is that they will be much larger communities than they are today.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
Slowly, in all the different forums in which these matters are discussed, there seems to be a spluttering into life of one sort or another.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
It gives a very bright light and has been discredited by thesplutterdue to inefficient electric- carbons.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
They become almost like doctors' surgeries when children are coughing and spluttering because of dampness in the house.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.