teeter
Americanverb (used without object)
-
to move unsteadily.
-
to ride a seesaw; teetertotter.
verb (used with object)
noun
-
a seesaw motion; wobble.
-
a seesaw; teetertotter.
verb
noun
Etymology
Origin of teeter
1835–45; variant of dial. titter, Middle English titeren < Old Norse titra tremble; cognate with German zittern to tremble, quiver
Explanation
To teeter is to waver or sway a bit from lack of balance. When people first learn to ride a bicycle, they inevitably teeter for a while before becoming more skilled and confident. A beginning gymnast will teeter on the balance beam, and anyone who's not accustomed to high-heeled shoes will teeter as they walk in them. Figuratively, you might even teeter, or hesitate, between two hard choices. A "teeter-totter," or seesaw, is a playground toy for two people, a long board fixed on a center support, designed so that when one kid is down, the other is up.
Vocabulary lists containing teeter
The Egypt Game
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Purple Hibiscus
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Charlotte's Web
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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.
The characters in her novels long for stability in landscapes where the past is forever intruding on the present—they teeter on the shifting border between perception and fact.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 17, 2026
"It has no particular love for the military regime, but when it looked like it might teeter and fall, it equated that with state collapse, and stepped in."
From BBC • Oct. 22, 2025
If it can’t get payments from tenants quickly enough to cover its debt needs, the company’s business model could teeter.
From Barron's • Sep. 30, 2025
Until vaccination rates improve, we’ll teeter on the edge with this disease.
From Slate • Apr. 24, 2025
Dragonwings seemed to teeter for a moment, balancing on the very edge of the hillside.
From "Dragonwings" by Laurence Yep
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.
