ebb and flow

Idioms  

1. A decline and increase, constant fluctuations. For example, He was fascinated by the ebb and flow of the Church's influence over the centuries. This expression alludes to the inward and outward movement of ocean tides. [Late 1500s]

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Example Sentences

Wars ebb and flow, and right now Ukraine's facing a harsh tide.

From BBC

Worse than that, if left in that time period for too long, they would inevitably become Butterflies themselves, meddling with the ebb and flow of time by their very presence.

From Literature

Ms. DuBois cannot be faulted for recounting the ebb and flow of 19th-century reform campaigns, and she does it well.

From The Wall Street Journal

There are signs this is more than the normal ebb and flow of executive reshuffling.

From The Wall Street Journal

Research suggests that pills which flatten the natural ebb and flow of fertility can dampen shifts in attraction that typically occur across the menstrual cycle, potentially altering initial mate choice.

From BBC

Related Words

• oscillate
• seesaw
• vary
• veer
• waver