dither

verb

dith·​er ˈdi-t͟hər 

dithered; dithering ˈdi-t͟h(ə-)riŋ 

intransitive verb

1

: to act nervously or indecisively : vacillate

dithering about what to do next

There's no time to dither.

2

: shiver, tremble

… the dithering of grass …

—Wallace Stevens

ditherer

ˈdi-t͟hər-ər 

noun

Synonyms of dither

• hesitate
• falter

Examples of dither in a Sentence

We don't have time to dither.

She did not dither about what to do next.

Recent Examples on the Web

Sarah Finnane dithered mightily before deciding on this wild wallpaper for the new powder room. —Gary Thompson, Midwest Living, 5 June 2026

Trump dithered, then waited until the last minute to back Paxton. —David A. Graham, The Atlantic, 20 May 2026

Besides, the rare earth industry is so cost-intensive that Lynas is even dithering on its new Texas facility despite the hundreds of millions secured from the Department of War. —Charlie Campbell, Time, 21 Apr. 2026

As the authorities dithered, people across the city grew restless. —Anand Gopal, New Yorker, 28 Feb. 2026

Word History

Etymology

variant of didder in same sense (with [dr̥] > [ðr̥] as in father entry 1, gather entry 1), going back to Middle English dideren "to tremble, shiver," of imitative origin

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for dither

• cither
• hither
• ither
• slither
• thither
• whither
• zither

Kids Definition

dither

1 of 2 noun

dith·​er ˈdit͟h-ər 

: a highly nervous or excited state

the news had him in a dither

dithery

-ə-rē

adjective

dither

2 of 2 verb

dithered; dithering

: to act nervously or indecisively