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vacillating

 - 3 dictionary results

vac⋅il⋅lat⋅ing

  [vas-uh-ley-ting]
Use vacillating in a Sentence
–adjective
1. not resolute; wavering; indecisive; hesitating: an ineffectual, vacillating person.
2. oscillating; swaying; fluctuating: a vacillating indicator.
Also, vacillant.

Origin:
1805–15; vacillate + -ing 2

Related forms:
vac⋅il⋅lat⋅ing⋅ly, adverb

Synonyms:
1. See fickle.

vac⋅il⋅late

  [vas-uh-leyt]
–verb (used without object), -lat⋅ed, -lat⋅ing.
1. to waver in mind or opinion; be indecisive or irresolute: His tendency to vacillate makes him a poor leader.
2. to sway unsteadily; waver; totter; stagger.
3. to oscillate or fluctuate.
Origin:
1590–1600; < L vacillātus (ptp. of vacillāre to sway to and fro); see -ate 1

Related forms:
vac⋅il⋅la⋅tor, noun

Synonyms:
1. hesitate. See waver. 2. reel.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To vacillating
vac·il·late   (vās'ə-lāt')   
intr.v.   vac·il·lat·ed, vac·il·lat·ing, vac·il·lates

  1. To sway from one side to the other; oscillate.

  2. To swing indecisively from one course of action or opinion to another. See Synonyms at hesitate.


[Latin vacillāre, vacillāt-, to waver.]
vac'il·lat'ing·ly adv., vac'il·la'tion n., vac'il·la'tor n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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