stagger
Use Stagger in a sentence
ər verb (used without object)
1.
to walk, move, or stand unsteadily.
2.
to falter or begin to give way, as in an argument or fight.
verb (used with object)
4.
to cause to reel, totter, or become unsteady: This load would stagger an elephant.
5.
to shock; render helpless with amazement or the like; astonish: The vastness of outer space staggers the mind.
6.
to cause to waver or falter: The news staggered her belief in the triumph of justice.
7.
to arrange in a zigzag order or manner on either side of a center: The captain staggered the troops along the road.
8.
to arrange otherwise than at the same time, especially in a series of alternating or continually overlapping intervals: They planned to stagger lunch hours so that the cafeteria would not be rushed.
00:10
Stagger
is always a great word to know.
So is harmonic motion. Does it mean:
| contends extension of a spring is proportional with the load applied to it |
| periodic motion consisting of at least one vibratory motion symmetric about an equilibrium region |
noun
10.
the act of staggering; a reeling or tottering movement or motion.
11.
a staggered order or arrangement.
12.
13.
staggers, (used with a singular verb) Veterinary Pathology.
a.
Also called blind staggers. acute selenium poisoning of livestock characterized by a staggering gait usually followed by respiratory failure and death.
b.
a condition of unknown cause, occurring in pregnant sheep, cattle, and other animals during or just following extended transport, characterized by a staggering gait and progressive paralysis.
Origin:
1520–30; earlier stacker to reel, Middle English stakeren < Old Norse stakra to reel, equivalent to stak(a) to stagger + -ra frequentative suffix
1520–30; earlier stacker to reel, Middle English stakeren < Old Norse stakra to reel, equivalent to stak(a) to stagger + -ra frequentative suffix
Related forms
stag·ger·er, noun
out·stag·ger, verb (used with object)
un·stag·gered, adjective
Synonyms
1. Stagger, reel, totter suggest an unsteady manner of walking. To stagger is successively to lose and regain one's equilibrium and the ability to maintain one's direction: to stagger with exhaustion, a heavy load, or intoxication. To reel is to sway dizzily and be in imminent danger of falling: to reel when faint with hunger. To totter is to move in a shaky, uncertain, faltering manner and suggests the immediate likelihood of falling from weakness or feebleness: An old man tottered along with a cane. 3. vacillate. 5. astound, confound, dumfound. 7. alternate.
1. Stagger, reel, totter suggest an unsteady manner of walking. To stagger is successively to lose and regain one's equilibrium and the ability to maintain one's direction: to stagger with exhaustion, a heavy load, or intoxication. To reel is to sway dizzily and be in imminent danger of falling: to reel when faint with hunger. To totter is to move in a shaky, uncertain, faltering manner and suggests the immediate likelihood of falling from weakness or feebleness: An old man tottered along with a cane. 3. vacillate. 5. astound, confound, dumfound. 7. alternate.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source
|
Link To stagger
Collins
World English Dictionary
stagger (ˈstæɡə) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —vb | |
| 1. | (usually intr) to walk or cause to walk unsteadily as if about to fall |
| 2. | (tr) to astound or overwhelm, as with shock: I am staggered by his ruthlessness |
| 3. | (tr) to place or arrange in alternating or overlapping positions or time periods to prevent confusion or congestion: a staggered junction; to stagger holidays |
| 4. | (intr) to falter or hesitate: his courage staggered in the face of the battle |
| 5. | (tr) to set (the wings of a biplane) so that the leading edge of one extends beyond that of the other |
| —n | |
| 6. | the act or an instance of staggering |
| 7. | a staggered arrangement on a biplane, etc |
| [C13 dialect stacker, from Old Norse staka to push] | |
| 'staggerer | |
| —n | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
stagger
1530, altered from stakeren (c.1300), from O.N. stakra or O.Dan. stagra, both "to push, stagger." Cognate with Du. staggelen "to stagger," Ger. staggeln "to stammer." Trans. sense of "bewilder, amaze" first recorded 1556; that of "arrange in a zig-zag pattern" is from 1856. Staggering "amazing" is attested
from 1565.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Cite This Source
Example sentences
People who share this view-or merely exploit it-have succeeded in slowing reform to a fitful stagger.
The government is alert to the danger and says it will do its best to stagger the pain.
The great tragedies, with their mighty figures and penetrating psychology, can stagger us unadorned.
The letter acknowledges the mistake and requests repayment, offering to stagger my payments in three installments.
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