I was wondering whether Americans use "fluster" intransitively. The only dictionary which introduces the verb as both transitive and intransitive one is "The Free Dictionary" as in:
To make agitated, excited, or confused:
- Shouts from the protesters flustered the speaker. I was flustered by my teacher's comments and began to stumble over my words.=
To become agitated, excited, or confused: a shy student who flusters easily.
Or it is more common to use it in a noun form rather than verbal form in AmE:
Noun:
Get in a fluster:
- The important thing when you're cooking for a lot of people is not to get in a fluster.
In brief, as you know we say:
I know we're short of time, but please Larisa, don't fluster me. (Transitively)
But I was wondering how an American normally uses it intransitively?
When the teacher said: "time is over, take the papers up," I ............. and forgot to check if I had written my name on my answer sheet.
a. flustered
b. got in a fluster (It seems to be a rare structure in everyday speech.)
c. got / was flustered (to me, they both mean the same)