flurry

1 of 2

noun

flur·​ry ˈflər-ē 

ˈflə-rē

plural flurries

1

a

: a gust of wind

b

: a brief light snowfall

2

a

: a brief period of commotion or excitement

b

: a sudden occurrence of many things at once : barrage sense 2

a flurry of insults

3

: a brief advance or decline in prices : a short-lived outburst of trading activity

flurry

2 of 2

verb

flurried; flurrying

transitive verb

: to cause to become agitated and confused

intransitive verb

: to move in an agitated or confused manner

Synonyms

Noun

• burst
• flare
• flare-up
• flash
• flicker
• flutter
• outbreak
• outburst
• spurt

Verb

• agitate
• ail
• alarm
• alarum
• bother
• concern
• derail
• discomfort
• discompose
• dismay
• disquiet
• distemper
• distract
• distress
• disturb
• exercise
• frazzle
• freak (out)
• fuss
• hagride
• perturb
• undo
• unhinge
• unsettle
• upset
• weird out
• worry

Examples of flurry in a Sentence

Noun

We had a few flurries yesterday.

a flurry of activity on the floor of the stock market as soon as the news spread

Verb

flurried by visions of falls and broken bones, the parents wouldn't even allow the child to ride a bike

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Since the intelligence agencies do not usually bother to debunk such individual bits of false propaganda, the sudden flurry of public notifications indicates the severity of the threat that U.S. spies now see in the underlying Russian plot against the election. —The New Yorker, 5 Nov. 2024

The flurry of pre-election surveys all found Trump leading the race, although only one found the former president outside its margin of error. —Stephanie Murray, The Arizona Republic, 5 Nov. 2024

Verb

In both, vast windows open up on the landscape that flurries past. —Elle Benson Easton, Travel + Leisure, 2 Nov. 2024

As the evening progressed, chatter from Club members new and old flurried up to the ceiling, drowning any sound of the capricious London weather. —Eoghan O'Donnell, Vogue, 18 July 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun

probably from flurr to throw scatteringly

First Known Use

Noun

1686, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

1749, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Kids Definition

flurry

1 of 2 noun

flur·​ry ˈflər-ē 

ˈflə-rē

plural flurries

1

a

: a gust of wind

b

: a brief light snowfall

2

: a sudden commotion

a flurry of publicity

3

: a brief outburst of activity

a flurry of trading in the stock exchange

flurry

2 of 2 verb

flurried; flurrying

: to become or cause to become agitated and confused