volatility
Americannoun
Explanation
Volatility is the trait of being excitable and unpredictable. Your volatility might ultimately be the thing that makes you unsuitable as a preschool teacher. The noun volatility is the characteristic of changing often and unpredictably. Your sister's volatility might be shown in how quickly she switches from laughing to crying. If you talk about the volatility of the stock market, stock prices are most likely fluctuating wildly. In chemistry, volatility means the speed with which a substance changes from solid to liquid, liquid to vapor, and so on. The root is the Latin volatilis, "fleeting, transitory, flying."
Vocabulary lists containing volatility
This Week in Words: October 21- 27, 2018
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This Week in Words: October 13 – 20, 2018
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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.
Of the three tanks with the toxic chemical, crews were able to add a chemical to one tank to neutralize its volatility, Covey said.
From Los Angeles Times • May 22, 2026
Gains like that typically lead to higher stock volatility, which might be the best explanation for Thursday trading.
From Barron's • May 22, 2026
However, such is the heightened appetite for risk that Goldman Sachs thinks it is that derivatives arena that should be used to protect portfolios from likely volatility in coming months.
From MarketWatch • May 22, 2026
Contract cancellations inched down this spring as homebuyers and sellers gain a clearer sense of housing market conditions after several years of volatility.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 22, 2026
The overcrowding lent a sense of chaos and volatility.
From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover
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.
