flustered
adjective
flus·tered
ˈflə-stərd 
: in a state of agitated confusion
She became so flustered that she'd … kept repeating, "Gosh, I can't even think …" Later she confided, "I was almost in tears right after doing those numbers."—
Stephen S. Hall
Stephen S. HallThe flustered lady gave me a blank stare and said, "That's not Mr. Franklin. The guard said Mr. Franklin was on his way up."—Dick Francis
Dick Francis… the oxen … seemed more patient and less flustered than their masters …—Deborah Straw
Deborah Straw
flusteredly
adverb
"Everything's under control, I think!" she says a little flusteredly. "We had a problem with the table posies, but fingers crossed, they should be on their way … ."
—Sophie Kinsella
Sophie Kinsella
Examples of flustered in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Some were too flustered to articulate their thoughts beyond a deep gratitude for God and Trump.
—Hannah Allam, ProPublica, 10 Feb. 2025
McIlroy credited his ability not to get flustered with himself and to strategically work his way around an iconic course where Jack Nicklaus, Tom Watson, and Tiger Woods have won the U.S. Open.
—Cam Inman, The Mercury News, 3 Feb. 2025
McIlroy credited his ability not to get flustered with himself and to strategically work his way around an iconic course where Jack Nicklaus, Tom Watson and Tiger Woods have won the U.S. Open.
—Cam Inman, Orlando Sentinel, 3 Feb. 2025
His ability to draw contact had the Matadors’ defenders visibly flustered.
—Ivan Carter, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for flustered
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Hannah Allam, ProPublica, 10 Feb. 2025
McIlroy credited his ability not to get flustered with himself and to strategically work his way around an iconic course where Jack Nicklaus, Tom Watson, and Tiger Woods have won the U.S. Open.
—Cam Inman, The Mercury News, 3 Feb. 2025
McIlroy credited his ability not to get flustered with himself and to strategically work his way around an iconic course where Jack Nicklaus, Tom Watson and Tiger Woods have won the U.S. Open.
—Cam Inman, Orlando Sentinel, 3 Feb. 2025
His ability to draw contact had the Matadors’ defenders visibly flustered.
—Ivan Carter, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for flustered
Cite this Entry
“Flustered.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/flustered. Accessed 1 Mar. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share