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flur·ry

(flûrē, flŭrē)

n. pl. flur·ries

1. A brief, light snowfall.

a. A sudden gust of wind.

b. A stirring mass, as of leaves or dust; a shower.

3. A sudden burst or commotion; a stir: a flurry of interest in the new product; a flurry of activity when the plane landed.

4. A short period of active trading, as on a stock exchange.

v. flur·ried, flur·ry·ing, flur·ries

v.tr.

To agitate, stir, or confuse.

v.intr.

To move or come down in a flurry.

[Perhaps from flurr, to scatter.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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