wobble
Americanverb (used without object)
-
wobbles,
present (3rd person singular)
-
wobbled,
past participle, past
-
wobbling
present participle
-
to incline to one side and to the other alternately, as a wheel, top, or other rotating body when not properly balanced.
-
to move unsteadily from side to side.
The table wobbled on its uneven legs.
-
to show unsteadiness; tremble; quaver.
His voice wobbled.
-
to vacillate; waver.
verb (used with object)
-
wobbles,
present (3rd person singular)
-
wobbled,
past participle, past
-
wobbling
present participle
noun
-
wobbles
plural
verb
-
(intr) to move, rock, or sway unsteadily
-
(intr) to tremble or shake
her voice wobbled with emotion
-
(intr) to vacillate with indecision
-
(tr) to cause to wobble
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
wobblesimple
-
wobblessimple
-
have wobbledperfect
-
has wobbledperfect
-
am wobblingprogressive
-
are wobblingprogressive
-
is wobblingprogressive
-
have been wobblingperfect progressive
-
has been wobblingperfect progressive
Past
-
wobbledsimple
-
had wobbledperfect
-
was wobblingprogressive
-
were wobblingprogressive
-
had been wobblingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of wobble
1650–60; < Low German wabbeln; akin to Old Norse vafla to toddle, Middle High German wabelen to waver, Old English wæflian to speak incoherently
Explanation
When things wobble, they teeter or rock unsteadily back and forth. A brand new bike rider is bound to wobble a little bit when she's pedaling down the street. A cafe table might wobble annoyingly until you prop up one leg with folded paper. And, when you first step off an amusement park ride, your legs might wobble for a while. Your voice can wobble too, or tremble, especially when you're upset or nervous. People wobble figuratively too: "When politicians wobble on important issues, it's hard to trust them."
Vocabulary lists containing wobble
Lesson 1
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"Modern Automotive Technology," Vocabulary from Section 9
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Night Owls
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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.
See Examples For:
But it has been individual traders’ recent affection for prediction markets that is extending the crypto winter even as AI stocks wobble.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 5, 2026
I close my eyes and, suddenly, my legs wobble and my ankles quiver.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026
Manchester Super Giants survived a late wobble with the bat to beat Trent Rockets by five wickets and win the franchise's first Hundred title at Lord's.
From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026
When the semis trade started to wobble late last month, many analysts on Wall Street initially hoped the pain would be short-lived.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 28, 2026
Thatha's lips wobble again, but Patti says yes, and she gives me a shiny new plastic comb and a toothbrush with a bright green handle.
From "Born Behind Bars" by Padma Venkatraman
Despite some wobbles, tech stocks have rebounded as earnings growth quieted concerns over free cash flow and AI overspending.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026
When the national mood wobbles, we turn to the arts, which have the power to free buried desires, soothe souls and cross divides.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 29, 2026
Those will mark a reset of Wall Street hedging, and resulting orders hitting markets could cause sharp if short-term market wobbles, he said.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 18, 2026
Blindsides are mainstays in films like this, just as in life, and tend to be followed by emotional fractures or wobbles of faith.
From Salon ● Jun. 7, 2026
Amin’s head wobbles but he smiles at Baba.
From "Without Refuge" by Jane Mitchell
As the rest of the market wobbled, investors crowded back into tech.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 6, 2026
"Her vocals wobbled dangerously, as if about to crack or collapse. But she was gaining confidence with every moment back on stage."
From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2026
But he was hit while releasing a Hail Mary attempt that wobbled incomplete.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 15, 2026
When AI stocks wobbled in recent weeks, Situational faced margin calls from its lenders to post additional collateral to stand behind their loans of stocks.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026
I wobbled like a newly dropped calf, overcome with the smell of sweat.
From "Hattie Big Sky" by Kirby Larson
If a wobbling stock market were to threaten companies like OpenAI, Wallerstein said he believes the federal government could ride to the rescue.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 11, 2026
Prince also accounted for England skipper Harry Brook and, when Harshit Rana dismissed Jacob Bethell and Tom Banton in successive deliveries, the hosts were wobbling at 111-4 in the 11th.
From BBC ● Jul. 7, 2026
Instead of rotating around a single axis like most asteroids and planets, Donaldjohanson behaves more like a wobbling spinning top.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 25, 2026
It’s an era of natural history with striking parallels to our own — climate change, extinction, devastating fires, a wobbling balance between humans and the rest of the natural world.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 6, 2026
He adjusts his grip and then tosses a wobbling pitch that sails way over my head.
From "A High Five for Glenn Burke" by Phil Bildner
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.
