staggered

American  

[stag-erd] / ˈstæg ərd /

adjective

1. arranged in a series of alternating or continually overlapping intervals of time.

   Board members serve staggered four-year terms, with new directors replacing outgoing ones each year.

2. arranged so as to alternate on either side of a center.

   A circular base approximately 2 meters in diameter is placed atop a couple of staggered layers of brick to allow for aeration from below.

3. scheduled or ordered in gradual stages; phased.

   Microsoft has confirmed that the new update will be a staggered release.

4. rendered helpless with astonishment; shocked.

   Shakespeare’s King Lear questions everything we know, posing to our staggered imaginations the possibility that the cosmos is immoral, even malevolent.

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verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of stagger.

Other Word Forms

• unstaggered adjective

Etymology

Origin of staggered

stagger ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. )

Example Sentences

At the end of his statement, Vesia put his fist over his heart, wobbled for a second, and it looked like he was going to faint before he staggered away.

From Los Angeles Times

He staggered backward, pulling one wet and muddy leg from the treacherous ground into which it had plunged.

From Literature

He staggered sideways, unable to keep his balance.

From Literature

I staggered back, overcome by the need for sleep.

From Literature

Now pickups are staggered, with students escorted outside one bus at a time.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• astonished
• awed
• baffled
• befuddled
• dazed
• mystified
• perplexed
• puzzled
• rattled
• shocked
• startled
• stunned
• surprised