irresolution

American

[ih-rez-uh-loo-shuhn] / ɪˌrɛz əˈlu ʃən /

noun

lack of resolution; lack of decision or purpose; vacillation.

Etymology

Origin of irresolution

First recorded in 1585–95; irresolute + -ion

Vocabulary lists containing irresolution

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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.

Declaring an uneasy truce with irresolution, she is aware that she’ll never know X, “as if we could ever say for certain where she ended and where the world began.”

From Washington Post • Mar. 20, 2023

One of the things I love most about short stories is their ambiguity and irresolution – the opposite of comfort.

From The Guardian • Jul. 18, 2020

I think with a good story you have a question in the back of your mind and the storyteller knows how to create an irresolution or imbalance that you are waiting to experience.

From Salon • May 29, 2020

Both are slow and open-ended, their irresolution suggesting a cinematic expanse.

From New York Times • Mar. 20, 2018

He looked then for weakness in her face, for fear or irresolution, and there was none.

From "The Pearl" by John Steinbeck

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023