Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- intransitive verb To be unable to choose between different courses of action or opinions; waver.
- intransitive verb To change between one state and another; fluctuate.
- intransitive verb Archaic To sway from one side to the other.
from The Century Dictionary.
- To waver; move one way and the other; reel; stagger.
- To fluctuate in mind or opinion; waver; be irresolute or inconstant.
- Synonyms and Waver, Oscillate, etc. (see
fluctuate ), sway. - To hesitate.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- intransitive verb To move one way and the other; to reel or stagger; to waver.
- intransitive verb To fluctuate in mind or opinion; to be unsteady or inconstant; to waver.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- verb intransitive To
sway unsteadily from one side to the other;oscillate . - verb intransitive To swing
indecisively from one course of action or opinion to another.
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- verb be undecided about something; waver between conflicting positions or courses of action
- verb move or sway in a rising and falling or wavelike pattern
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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The word vacillate means “to be indecisive … to sway from side to side.”
Surviving in an Angry World Charles F. Stanley 2010
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Versions of the words "vacillate" and "indecisive" were much more in evidence on the McCain campaign conference call this morning than in past calls.
McCain: I Will Kill Bin Laden; Obama Won't Say What He'd Do 2009
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OrenWithAnE: Every time we have this discussion you vacillate between “the US has nothing to fear from the ICC” and “it would defeat the point to exempt the US from the ICC”.
The Volokh Conspiracy » “Garzon and the Trouble with International Law” 2010
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You seem to vacillate between “this is my preference, i.e. what is good for me” and “this is what is good for everyone”.
The Volokh Conspiracy » Sex Education, Dirty Words, and the Due Process Clause 2010
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Every time we have this discussion you vacillate between “the US has nothing to fear from the ICC” and “it would defeat the point to exempt the US from the ICC”.
The Volokh Conspiracy » “Garzon and the Trouble with International Law” 2010
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A set of forks, flanking a plate of fish, vacillate between threatening weapons and frail hands.
Constructivist Criticism Laid Bare Lance Esplund 2011
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I vacillate between dark and amusingly self-absorbed …
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You seem to vacillate between “this is my preference, i.e. what is good for me” and “this is what is good for everyone”.
The Volokh Conspiracy » Sex Education, Dirty Words, and the Due Process Clause 2010
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And let's face it - as military family members we often vacillate between reaching out and pulling back abruptly when no one grabs the hand we've extended.
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You seem to vacillate between “this is my preference, i.e. what is good for me” and “this is what is good for everyone”.
The Volokh Conspiracy » Sex Education, Dirty Words, and the Due Process Clause 2010
blafferty commented on the word vacillate
This word feels weak-chinned and sounds like the motion of your hand when you're saying "kinda, maybe, I don't know."
May 25, 2009