vacillating
Americanadjective
-
not resolute; wavering; indecisive; hesitating.
an ineffectual, vacillating person.
- Synonyms:
- irresolute, hesitant
-
oscillating; swaying; fluctuating.
a vacillating indicator.
adjective
Related Words
See fickle.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of vacillating
First recorded in 1805–15; vacillat(e) + -ing 2
Explanation
If someone can't make up their mind, you can call that person vacillating. A vacillating student might not know whether to commit to a major in electrical engineering or in art history. The word vacillating comes from the Latin vacillat- meaning "swayed." When you're having trouble sticking to a decision, you can be described as vacillating — meaning that you are swaying between two choices. The spelling of vacillating can be tricky to remember. But vacillating, like its definition "uncertain," has the letter c in it. And to remember the two ls, think about the word's meaning, wavering between two choices.
Vocabulary lists containing vacillating
Frankenstein
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Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I've Been to the Mountaintop" (1968)
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The Importance of Being Earnest
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Vacillating between its safety and performance attributes, Volvo offered a message as mixed as the product line.
From New York Times • Mar. 24, 2022
Vacillating between wide-screen seas of dancers and intimate portraits of immigrant life, “In the Heights” tells a story both specific and of a community.
From Seattle Times • Jun. 8, 2021
Vacillating and bad-tempered though Goya was, no ruler thought of dispensing with his talents.
From Time Magazine Archive
Vacillating, unable to think boldly for themselves, they were doubtless much to blame, but their miseries were infinitely more than they deserved.
From The Raid from Beausejour; and How the Carter Boys Lifted the Mortgage by Roberts, Charles George Douglas, Sir
Vacillating between the toll that might be taken of the plums if he left them, and the damage to his hair if he took them, he finally decided on the latter course.
From Verner's Pride by Wood, Henry, Mrs.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
