Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- intransitive verb To move unsteadily back and forth: synonym: swing.
- intransitive verb To move in a certain direction with a swaying or unsteady motion.
- intransitive verb To exhibit irresolution or indecision; vacillate.
- intransitive verb To become unsteady or unsure; falter.
- intransitive verb To become diverted.
- intransitive verb To change or fluctuate.
- intransitive verb To tremble or quaver in sound, as of the voice or a musical note.
- intransitive verb To flicker or glimmer.
- noun The action of wavering.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun One who or that which waves; specifically, in printing, an inking-roller; an apparatus which distributes ink on the table or on other rollers, but not on the form of types: so called from its vibratory movement.
- To move up and down or to and fro; wave; float; flutter; be tossed or rocked about; sway.
- To quiver; flicker; glimmer; glance.
- To falter; fail; reel; totter.
- To be undetermined or irresolute; fluctuate; vacillate.
- Synonyms and Vacillate. See
fluctuate . - Hesitate, etc. See
scruple . - To cause to wave or move to and fro; set in waving motion; brandish.
- To demur or scruple about; hesitate at; shirk.
- noun A sapling or timberling left standing in a fallen wood.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun Prov. Eng. A sapling left standing in a fallen wood.
- intransitive verb To play or move to and fro; to move one way and the other; hence, to totter; to reel; to swing; to flutter.
- intransitive verb To be unsettled in opinion; to vacillate; to be undetermined; to fluctuate.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- verb intransitive To
sway back andforth ; tototter orreel . - verb intransitive To
flicker ,glimmer ,quiver , as a weak light. - verb intransitive To
fluctuate orvary , as commodity prices or a poorly sustained musical pitch. - verb intransitive To
shake ortremble , as the hands or voice. - verb intransitive To
falter ; become unsteady; begin to fail or give way. - verb intransitive To be
indecisive between choices; to feel or showdoubt or indecision; tovacillate . - noun An act of wavering,
vacillating , etc. - noun Someone who
waves , enjoys waving, etc. - noun Someone who specializes in
waving (hair treatment). - noun A tool that accomplishes hair waving.
- noun UK, dialect, dated A
sapling left standing in a fallenwood . - noun A
darkwaver ; a fan ofdarkwave music.
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun the act of moving back and forth
- verb be unsure or weak
- verb move or sway in a rising and falling or wavelike pattern
- noun someone who communicates by waving
- verb give off unsteady sounds, alternating in amplitude or frequency
- verb pause or hold back in uncertainty or unwillingness
- verb move back and forth very rapidly
- verb sway to and fro
- noun the act of pausing uncertainly
- verb move hesitatingly, as if about to give way
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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Kamuk did not hesitate, nor did his expression waver from seriousness.
Star Trek: Myriad Universes: Shattered Light David R. George III 2010
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Yet the Founding Fathers did not waver from the idea that justice had to be based on the evidence and that defendants were owed a fair trial based on what the prosecution could prove.
What We See 2009
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I jest of course but it points out how we waver from the original intent.
Think Progress » Right-Wing Pundits Support Cheney’s Torture Policy, Experts Don’t 2005
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Back in February, Shays even voted against a non-binding resolution condeming the surge -- even though during the 2006 campaign he'd allegedly started to "waver" in his support for Bush.
WINO Chris Shays Says He Wants Withdrawal, But Keeps Voting Against It 2009
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The rest of the country either doesn't know Hagel from the local plumber, or they do know Hagel and they're part of the angry cadre of morons who will never "waver" in their support for the Iraq mess.
Chuck Lippstreu: Chuck Hagel's Adventures in Presidential Never-Never Land 2008
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On Friday night, the first night of Istanbul talks, Iranian negotiators seemed to "waver"
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This is something I kind of waver on sometimes, but for now I agree with
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Rather, linguists compare patterns of sound change, which do not waver and are thus highly predictable.
The English Is Coming! Leslie Dunton-Downer 2010
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Rather, linguists compare patterns of sound change, which do not waver and are thus highly predictable.
The English Is Coming! Leslie Dunton-Downer 2010
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One can only hope that they stand by these principles and do not waver in response to the allure of ongoing or improving deals with Algerian oil companies at the sacrifice of democratic ideals.
Kathryn Cameron Porter: Change in Algeria Fundamental for Human Rights and Security Kathryn Cameron Porter 2011
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