disfluency
noun
dis·flu·en·cy
dis-ˈflü-ən(t)-sē 
variants
or dysfluency
1
: an involuntary disruption in the flow of speech that may occur during normal childhood development of spoken language or during normal adult speech but is most often symptomatic of a speech impairment
especially
: a disorder of vocal communication that is marked by frequent involuntary disruption or blocking of speech (as by repetition of all or part of a word or by prolonging vocal sounds) and typically has an onset during childhood : stuttering
2
: an act or instance of disfluency : stutter
Examples of disfluency in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
While 2 percent of children stutter, according to the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, most outgrow this disfluency, often without intervention.
—
Anna Leahy, Washington Post, 20 Jan. 2023
Overall, these mixed results warrant further research into the relationship between font disfluency and memory.
—Carla Delgado, Discover Magazine, 9 Oct. 2021
Google is constantly updating its Google Assistant with new voice samples to better understand people with accents or speech disfluencies.
—Kevin Wheeler, USA TODAY, 6 Jan. 2020
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Anna Leahy, Washington Post, 20 Jan. 2023
Overall, these mixed results warrant further research into the relationship between font disfluency and memory.
—Carla Delgado, Discover Magazine, 9 Oct. 2021
Google is constantly updating its Google Assistant with new voice samples to better understand people with accents or speech disfluencies.
—Kevin Wheeler, USA TODAY, 6 Jan. 2020
Cite this Entry
“Disfluency.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/disfluency. Accessed 3 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
disfluency
noun
dis·flu·en·cy
variants
or dysfluency
plural disfluencies
1
: an involuntary disruption in the flow of speech that may occur during normal childhood development of spoken language or during normal adult speech but is most often symptomatic of a speech impairment
especially
: a disorder of vocal communication that is marked by frequent involuntary disruption or blocking of speech (as by repetition of all or part of a word or by prolonging vocal sounds) and typically has an onset during childhood : stuttering
2
: an act or instance of disfluency : stutter
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