Fluster
/ˈflʌstər/noun
To make someone agitated, confused, or embarrassed.
Did you know?Fluster is probably related to older English words like *flustery* and *fusty*/*fuster*, tied to the idea of puffing, blowing, or stirring up into confusion rather than any real occult term.
Etymological Timeline
Early Modern English
English
fluster
“to confuse, agitate, or put into disorder”
17th-18th Century
English
flustery / flustered
“confused, disordered, or made hot and bothered”
Middle English
English
fuster / fusty
“to become stale, moldy, or emit a strong smell; possibly linked to puffing or decay”
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*fust-
“likely a base conveying blowing, puffing, or swelling up; exact prehistory uncertain”