Flutter

[fluht-er] /ˈflʌt ər/

verb (used without object)
1.
to wave, flap, or toss about:
Banners fluttered in the breeze.
2.
to flap the wings rapidly; fly with flapping movements.
3.
to move in quick, irregular motions; vibrate.
4.
to beat rapidly, as the heart.
5.
to be tremulous or agitated.
6.
to go with irregular motions or aimless course:
to flutter back and forth.
verb (used with object)
7.
to cause to flutter; vibrate; agitate.
8.
to throw into nervous or tremulous excitement; cause mental agitation; confuse.
noun
9.
a fluttering movement:
He made little nervous flutters with his hands.
10.
a state of nervous excitement or mental agitation:
a flutter of anticipation.
11.
.
12.
Audio. a variation in pitch resulting from rapid fluctuations in the speed of a recording.
Compare 2 (def 1).
13.
Chiefly British. a small wager or speculative investment.
/ˈflʌtə/
verb
1.
to wave or cause to wave rapidly; flap
2.
(intransitive) (of birds, butterflies, etc) to flap the wings
3.
(intransitive) to move, esp downwards, with an irregular motion
4.
(intransitive) (pathol) (of the auricles of the heart) to beat abnormally rapidly, esp in a regular rhythm
5.
to be or make nervous or restless
6.
(intransitive) to move about restlessly
7.
(swimming) to cause (the legs) to move up and down in a flutter kick or (of the legs) to move in this way
8.
(transitive) (Brit, informal) to wager or gamble (a small amount of money)
noun
9.
a quick flapping or vibrating motion
10.
a state of nervous excitement or confusion
11.
excited interest; sensation; stir
12.
(Brit, informal) a modest bet or wager
13.
(pathol) an abnormally rapid beating of the auricles of the heart (200 to 400 beats per minute), esp in a regular rhythm, sometimes resulting in heart block
14.
(electronics) a slow variation in pitch in a sound-reproducing system, similar to wow but occurring at higher frequencies
15.
a potentially dangerous oscillation of an aircraft, or part of an aircraft, caused by the interaction of aerodynamic forces, structural elastic reactions, and inertia
16.
(swimming) See flutter kick
17.
(music) Also called flutter tonguing. a method of sounding a wind instrument, esp the flute, with a rolling movement of the tongue
v.

Old English floterian “to flutter, fly, flicker, float to and fro, be tossed by waves,” frequentative of flotian “to float” (see float (v.)). Related: Fluttered; fluttering. As a noun from 1640s; meaning “state of excitement” is 1740s.

flutter flut·ter (flŭt’ər)
n.
Abnormally rapid pulsation, especially of the atria or ventricles of the heart.