0 past simple and past participle of splutter
1 to speak in a quick and confused way, producing short, unclear noises because of surprise, anger, etc.:
[ + speech ] "But, er ... when, um, ... how?" he spluttered.
The old gentleman was spluttering with indignation.
She took too big a gulp of whisky and started to cough and splutter.
Substratum heaved and spluttered with the primal energy of a pool of lava and as little a sense of direction.
He was embarrassed, spluttered apologies and started to back away from me.
Even so, the writing was on the wall as the economy lost impetus and the boom spluttered to stagnation.
I spluttered something about being a professional person, to which he asked what a professional housewife like me was doing being a mayor.
By implication—indeed, he spluttered it out explicitly—his forecast is that they will be much larger communities than they are today.
The bright flame has spluttered and fizzled out.
It spluttered and went out.
Thus, for a while, the issue burned brightly and then it spluttered and died, and the civil servants put away their files with a sigh of relief.
