wavering

American

[wey-ver-ing] / ˈweɪ vər ɪŋ /

adjective

fluttering, swaying to and fro, tottering, or reeling.

To make things more bearable, he imagined she was close by—just beyond that wavering curtain.
The two stumbling cousins came to a wavering halt, leaning on each other.
flickering or quivering, as light.

In the wavering light of the torch, the old warrior's face showed fond concern.
becoming unsteady; beginning to fail or give way.

It wasn’t just the physical pain I suffered, it was the loss of self, the wavering sense of identity.
shaking or trembling, as the hands or voice.

"Our thoughts are with our colleague’s family, friends, and loved ones," said the anchorman with a wavering voice.
feeling or showing doubt, indecision, etc.; vacillating.

The disciplined mind is strong and effective, while the constantly wavering mind is weak and ineffective.
fluctuating or varying.

The participants braved the wavering March weather for an engaging and action-packed day.

noun

the act or condition of becoming unsteady, vacillating, faltering, or fluctuating.

Any wavering of attention is very likely to result in an error.
the act or condition of flickering, swaying, tottering, or fluttering.

There was a wavering in the cracked screen.
the act or condition of shaking or trembling, as the hands or voice.

Her fear began to manifest itself in a minute trembling of her hand and a slight wavering of her voice.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Inflected Forms

Nouns

waverings

plural

Etymology

Origin of wavering

First recorded in 1350–1400; waver ¹ ( def. ) + -ing ² ( def. ) for the adjective senses; waver ¹ ( def. ) + -ing ¹ ( def. ) for the noun senses

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.

See Examples For:

wavering waverings

And in this strict social classification - known as songbun – the jjaepo belong to the "wavering class", somewhere between the core and hostile classes.

From BBC ● Jun. 27, 2026

“As we’ve seen over the last couple of years, there’s been wavering confidence that demand will persist in the long run, causing the market to selloff.”

From MarketWatch ● Mar. 30, 2026

Fellow semiconductor companies Advanced Micro Devices External link and Broadcom External link were wavering between small gains and losses in early trading.

From Barron's ● Mar. 9, 2026

France is expected to continue posting one of the eurozone’s lowest inflation rates, with consumer prices seen wavering between 1% and 1.5% in the coming months, ING economist Charlotte de Montpellier said in a note.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 27, 2026

The engineers were rigging a series of lights to help them bring the cable to the bomb: she could hear their voices not far away, shouting commands, and see the lights wavering through the trees.

From "The Amber Spyglass" by Philip Pullman

Green waverings play on the high gray stone.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 14, 2013

If there were any waverings within the military leadership after the U.S. decision, they failed to show.

From Time Magazine Archive

In Nehru's own waverings and hesitations these past weeks, his most determined opponents have been the Indian press and Indian students.

From Time Magazine Archive

The Lincoln Tunnel reminds him of an extended lavatory wall; there is fascination in the waverings of tin cans, tires and old shoes under a few inches of water.

From Time Magazine Archive

Had it been allowable entertainment, had there been no pain to her friend, or reproach to herself, in the waverings of Harriet’s mind, Emma would have been amused by its variations.

From "Emma" by Jane Austen

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