Confusing words? There’s no difference between stutter and stammer
Stutter vs. stammer
I’ve included the words stutter and stammer in this Confusing words section, but actually there’s nothing to be confused about: the two have the same meaning.
People who stutter (or stammer, of course) speak with sudden pauses (involuntary) and they often repeat the first sounds of words. The flow of speech is interrupted, and the speaker gets ‘stuck’ on a word, can’t say it and therefore can’t continue with the sentence.
For example, the word put /put/ might become /p-p-p-put/ when someone is stuttering. Mum /mum/ might become /m-m-m-mum/.
Causes of stuttering
When someone stutters, it may be a permanent speech problem. It might just be temporary, caused by fear or nervousness in a certain situation.
Stutter, have a stutter, speak with a stutter
Stutter and stammer can be used as verbs and nouns. When using a noun, we can say have a stammer/stutter or speak with a stammer/stutter. Here are some examples:
- I stuttered when I was young. [stutter = verb]
- I had a stutter when I was young. [a stutter = noun]
- She always stammers when she gets nervous. [stammer = verb]
- She speaks with a stammer when she gets nervous. [a stammer = noun]
Here are one or two more examples, from the Cambridge Dictionary.
King George VI famously had a severe stammer: if you haven’t already seen it, check out the fantastic film The King’s Speech, starring Colin Firth.
More vocabulary
If you’d like to learn or practise more English vocabulary connected with sounds or the voice, check out an exercise here on Speakspeak: Sounds our voices make (Upper-intermediate / advanced level).
