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Synonyms

fluctuate

American  
[fluhk-choo-eyt] / ˈflʌk tʃuˌeɪt /

verb (used without object)

fluctuated, fluctuating

  1. to change continually; shift back and forth; vary irregularly.

    The price of gold fluctuated wildly last month.

  2. to move back and forth in waves.

    Synonyms:
    oscillate

verb (used with object)

fluctuated, fluctuating

  1. to cause to fluctuate.

fluctuate British  
/ ˈflʌktjʊˌeɪt /

verb

  1. to change or cause to change position constantly; be or make unstable; waver or vary

  2. (intr) to rise and fall like a wave; undulate

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Usage

What does fluctuate mean? Fluctuate means to continually change or shift back and forth.The verb is most commonly used in the context of abstract or intangible things that frequently change, such as temperature, the stock market, or someone’s mood.This kind of continual change is called fluctuation.Example: The volume on my TV keeps fluctuating—it gets louder during commercials and then it gets quiet again when the show comes back on.

Related Words

See waver 1.

Other Word Forms

  • nonfluctuating adjective
  • unfluctuating adjective

Etymology

Origin of fluctuate

First recorded in 1625–35; from Latin fluctuātus “undulated,” past participle of fluctuāre “to flow,” equivalent to fluctu(s) “a flowing” (derivative of fluere “to flow”) + -ātus -ate 1

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.