flustering

English

Etymology

From fluster

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈflʌstəɹɪŋ/

Adjective

flustering (comparative more flustering, superlative most flustering)

1. agitated, confusing
   • 1840, James Fenimore Cooper, The Pathfinder‎^[1], Lea and Blanchard, page 53:

     To me it seems, Mabel, that whenever a thing is really grand and potent, it has a quiet majesty about it, that is altogether unlike the frothy and flustering manner of smaller matters, and so it was with them rapids.

   • 1875, Anthony Trollope, The Way We Live Now‎^[2], Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 135:

     There is always a flustering breeze in the air and a petrubation generally through the county when they come or go…

   • 1997, Rosemary Perry, Teaching Practice: A Guide for Early Childhood Students‎^[3], Routledge, page 57:

     Although at times my prac experiences were flustering and frustrating, I have gained many new insights into catering for the individual needs of children.

   • 2004, Geoffrey Petty, Teaching Today: A Practical Guide, page 361:

     There is nothing more flustering than to wrestle with an unfamiliar piece of equipment in the presence of a class!

   • 2007, Frank Swinnerton, Coquette‎^[4], READ BOOKS, page 39:

     She almost forgot Toby while she was bathed in this flustering brilliance of light and noise.

Derived terms

• flusteringly

Verb

flustering

1. present participle of fluster