Meanings
plural sputters
- countableuncountableMoist matter thrown out in small detached particles.
present singular third person sputters · participle present sputtering · participle past sputtered · past sputtered
- intransitiveTo emit saliva or spit from the mouth in small, scattered portions, as in rapid speaking.
The child [...] kicked, and crowed, and sputtered, when his mother took him, and put up his little fingers to clutch her hair, and was to her as a young god upon the earth. Nothing in the world had ever been created so beautiful, so joyous, so satisfactory, so divine!
1869 May, Anthony Trollope, “Lady Milborough as Ambassador”, in He Knew He Was Right, volume I, London: Strahan and Company, […], →OCLC, page 87 - ambitransitiveTo speak so rapidly as to emit saliva; to utter words hastily and indistinctly, with a spluttering sound, as in rage.
They could neither of them speak their rage, and so fell a sputtering at one another, like two roasting apples.
1700, William Congreve, The Way of the World1 more example
In the midst of caresses, and without the least pretended incitement, to sputter out the basest and falsest accusations.
1730, Jonathan Swift, A Vindication of Lord Carteret
Synonyms & antonyms
verbTo throw out anything, as little jets of steam, with a noise like that made by one sputtering.
More synonyms by meaning
nounthe noise of something spattering or sputtering explosively
nounan utterance (of words) with spitting sounds (as in rage)
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Middle Englishsputen“to spout, vomit”
- Middle English*sputren
- Englishsputter
Probably representing Middle English *sputren, *sputrien, a frequentative form of Middle English sputen (“to spout, vomit”), equivalent to spout + -er. Cognate with Saterland Frisian spüttern (“to inject, spray, splash”), West Frisian sputterje (“to sputter”), Dutch sputteren (“to sputter”), Low German sputtern, spruttern (“to sprinkle”), German sprudeln (“to spout, squirt”). Compare splutter.
More words from Middle English
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Bulgarian пръскам слюнки, разпрашвам
- пръскам слюнки (prăskam sljunki)to emit saliva or spit from the mouth in small, scattered portions, as in rapid speaking
- разпрашвам (razprašvam)to cause surface atoms or electrons of a solid to be ejected by bombarding it with heavy atoms or ions
Czech rozprašovat, odprašovat
- rozprašovatto cause surface atoms or electrons of a solid to be ejected by bombarding it with heavy atoms or ions
- odprašovatto cause surface atoms or electrons of a solid to be ejected by bombarding it with heavy atoms or ions
- naprašovatto coat the surface of an object by sputtering
- naprášitto coat the surface of an object by sputtering
Finnish pärskytellä, sopertaa
- pärskytelläto emit saliva or spit from the mouth in small, scattered portions, as in rapid speaking
- sopertaato speak so rapidly as to emit saliva; to utter words hastily and indistinctly
- sössöttääto speak so rapidly as to emit saliva; to utter words hastily and indistinctly
- sputteroidato cause surface atoms or electrons of a solid to be ejected by bombarding it with heavy atoms or ions
- sputteroidato coat the surface of an object by sputtering
- pölyttääto coat the surface of an object by sputtering
French postillonner, pulvériser
- postillonnerto emit saliva or spit from the mouth in small, scattered portions, as in rapid speaking
- pulvériserto cause surface atoms or electrons of a solid to be ejected by bombarding it with heavy atoms or ions
- revêtir, métalliserto coat the surface of an object by sputtering
German spucken, mit feuchter Aussprache sprechen
- spuckento emit saliva or spit from the mouth in small, scattered portions, as in rapid speaking
- mit feuchter Aussprache sprechento speak so rapidly as to emit saliva; to utter words hastily and indistinctly
Italian sputacchiare
- sputacchiareto emit saliva or spit from the mouth in small, scattered portions, as in rapid speaking
Māori ānu
- ānuto emit saliva or spit from the mouth in small, scattered portions, as in rapid speaking
Russian бры́згать слюной, бессвязно говори́ть
- бры́згать слюной (brýzgatʹ)to emit saliva or spit from the mouth in small, scattered portions, as in rapid speaking
- бессвязно говори́ть (bessvjazno)to speak so rapidly as to emit saliva; to utter words hastily and indistinctly
- напылять (napyljatʹ)to coat the surface of an object by sputtering
Spanish farfullar
- farfullarto emit saliva or spit from the mouth in small, scattered portions, as in rapid speaking
Turkish püskürmek
- püskürmekto emit saliva or spit from the mouth in small, scattered portions, as in rapid speaking
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with sputter
Cite this entry
sputter. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sputter
“sputter.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sputter. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “sputter,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sputter.
Source: sputter on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.