vacillate
verb (used without object)
to waver in mind or opinion; be indecisive or irresolute.
was vacillating
-
past progressiveof vacillate.past progressive
Used to describe an ongoing action or continuous state that was happening at a specific time in the past.
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.
There were grumblings that Kennedy was vacillating and taking a long time with the job.*
From Time Magazine Archive
It was here that Blanche had been wont to receive him in days gone by, when his fancy was vacillating between her and Marie-Anne.
From The Honor of the Name by Émile Gaboriau
In his policy he was vacillating and eventually he retired to France, being absent during the three momentous years prior to the deposition of Mary.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 12, Slice 8 "Haller, Albrecht" to "Harmonium" by Various
A policy of expansion adopted.—The policy of the ministry regarding the West was vacillating, and more so, no doubt, because of the pressure of conflicting interests.
From The Colonization of North America 1492-1783 by Herbert Eugene Bolton
He was vacillating, but he was not so vacillating as the Ministers.
From The Atlantic Monthly, Volume 10, No. 58, August, 1862 by Various
