to whutter
9.9
To say something in a local way that is hard to understand
- verb
- UK
:
preguntar
- He leaned over and whuttered something I couldn't quite understand.
Examples
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In the old village, people would often whutter their questions across the street.
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As she walked past, I heard her whutter a question about the time.
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She whuttered a greeting as she passed by the open window.
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What did you just whutter?
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He always whutters when he's confused.
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In the countryside, it is common to hear children whutter to their friends while playing outside.
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Whenever he's unsure of something, he tends to whutter instead of asking directly.
How Clear
Surface Forms
whutter infinitive
whuttered past
whuttered past participle
whuttering present participle
whutters third person singular
Etymology
Whutter is a helpful blend of what and utter, and it sounds like mutter, so you can picture someone softly saying 'what'. That's why whutter means to say or ask 'what' in a dialect or nonstandard way.