dither
Americannoun
-
a trembling; vibration.
-
a state of flustered excitement or fear.
verb (used without object)
-
dithers,
present (3rd person singular)
-
dithered,
past participle, past
-
dithering
present participle
-
to act irresolutely; vacillate.
-
North England. to tremble with excitement or fear.
verb
-
to be uncertain or indecisive
-
to be in an agitated state
-
to tremble, as with cold
noun
-
a state of indecision
-
a state of agitation
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
dithersimple
-
ditherssimple
-
have ditheredperfect
-
has ditheredperfect
-
am ditheringprogressive
-
are ditheringprogressive
-
is ditheringprogressive
-
have been ditheringperfect progressive
-
has been ditheringperfect progressive
Past
-
ditheredsimple
-
had ditheredperfect
-
was ditheringprogressive
-
were ditheringprogressive
-
had been ditheringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of dither
1640–50; variant of didder ( late Middle English diddere ); cf. dodder 1
Explanation
When you dither, you're flustered because you can't make up your mind about something. You might dither about what to do if your two best friends invite you to parties on the same night. The verb dither implies not only that you're having a hard time deciding about something, but that you're upset or agitated about it. You might say to your friend, "Don't just pace around and dither about what to wear! We're going to be late!" In the 17th century, dither meant "quake or tremble," and by the early 1800s it came to mean both "vacillate" and "be anxious."
Vocabulary lists containing dither
"The Landlady" by Roald Dahl
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Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
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Eats, Shoots & Leaves
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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.
See Examples For:
Elias has decided to stay put even as prices dither.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 13, 2026
It said residents and workers suffered while the council "dither around a deal already scoped out at conciliation service Acas".
From BBC ● Mar. 11, 2026
And while Hamlet may dither in seeking revenge for his father’s murder, we don’t hope that the scheming Claudius gets away with it.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 14, 2026
Among bereaved families, there is widespread dismay that successive governments have chosen to dither and delay when the consequences of inaction has been further lost lives.
From BBC ● Jan. 11, 2025
When Sunday actually came around, I was in a real dither over my date.
From "Warriors Don't Cry: A Searing Memoir of the Battle to Integrate Little Rock's Central High" by Melba Pattillo Beals
But the feature dithers in development, which becomes something of a running joke here; the shot of a stone-faced Mr. McElwee watching a ridiculous promo reel is a moment of perfectly understated comedy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 9, 2026
But as Jacy dithers and stalls in the July heat, so does the story, even as it wends toward the feverish, improbable rush of its climax.
From New York Times ● May 25, 2023
The narrator dithers over how much she wants a leadership position in this unofficial hierarchy of casual dismissiveness, earnestness avoidance and radical obsolescence.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 9, 2021
Foster dithers over a clearance, the ball at his feet.
From The Guardian ● Nov. 30, 2019
Jack Odin had seen B-47’s come in with a great deal more hubbub and dithers than the Nebula had caused.
From Hunters Out of Space by Joseph Everidge Kelleam
The air force had flagged the need for new advanced fighter aircraft 25 years ago, but successive governments dithered on the purchase.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 25, 2026
It was a much quieter affair after the break but Parris was at hand to capitalise as Spurs dithered and were unable to clear the ball from the six-yard box.
From BBC ● May 7, 2023
While Washington dithered, he appeared to place risky bets that incinerated his fortune, jeopardized billions of dollars in Silicon Valley capital and upended an entire ecosystem of cryptocurrency start-ups.
From Washington Post ● Nov. 17, 2022
Lansbury’s Jessica, on the other hand, never dithered.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 12, 2022
Mrs. Cranston dithered up and down the hall.
From "Secrets at Sea" by Richard Peck
On Wednesday, Sir Keir defended his government's record on military spending after Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch accused him of "dithering".
From BBC ● Jun. 11, 2026
“Fashion is art,” declared the Met’s director, Max Hollein, at the show’s press preview last week, as if to say, Let’s stop dithering on the subject.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 9, 2026
Also speaking on The Sunday Show, Swinney called on the UK government to "stop dithering" and "get on with taking some decision" about reducing energy costs.
From BBC ● Mar. 15, 2026
After some dithering, I settled on my home state of New York.
From Slate ● Jan. 13, 2026
“A Princess’s reception? A Royal Command?” she shrieked, dithering.
From "Secrets at Sea" by Richard Peck
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.
