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flus·ter

(flŭstər)

v. flus·tered, flus·ter·ing, flus·ters

v. tr.

To make agitated, excited, or confused: Shouts from the protesters flustered the speaker. I was flustered by my teacher's comments and began to stumble over my words.

v. intr.

To become agitated, excited, or confused: a shy student who flusters easily.

A state of agitation, excitement, or confusion: The heavy traffic put the driver in a fluster.

[From Middle English flostring, agitation, probably of Scandinavian origin; see pleu- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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