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Definition of "flutter" []

  • To wave or flap rapidly in an irregular manner: curtains that fluttered in the breeze. (verb-intransitive)
  • To fly by a quick light flapping of the wings. (verb-intransitive)
  • To flap the wings without flying. (verb-intransitive)
  • To move or fall in a manner suggestive of tremulous flight: "Her arms rose, fell, and fluttered with the rhythm of the song” ( Evelyn Waugh). (verb-intransitive)
  • To vibrate or beat rapidly or erratically: My heart fluttered wildly. (verb-intransitive)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "flutter" in a sentence
  • "In these two wind-conscious memoirs, the word flutter appears often and imaginatively."
  • "State Capitol police today reversed an earlier decision to allow the bright yellow "Don't Tread On Me" banner to flutter from the highly visible flagpole after learning that activists had planned a political rally following the flag-raising ceremony."
  • "Therein flutter the souls of the dead; for the dead be many and the living few."