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fal·ter | \ ˈfȯl-tər 
\
\faltered; faltering\ ˈfȯl-t(ə-)riŋ \
\Definition of falter
(Entry 1 of 2)
1a : to walk unsteadily : stumble the … stranger falters out of the thicket and drops to his knees— Dudley Fitts
b : to give way : totter could feel my legs faltering
c : to move waveringly or hesitatingly
forced to bail out of faltering airplanes over the Alps — Nat'l Geographic
2 : to speak brokenly or weakly : stammer her voice faltered
3a : to hesitate in purpose or action : waver he never faltered in his determination
b : to lose drive or effectiveness
the business was faltering
: to utter hesitatingly or brokenly
faltered an excuse
falter
nounDefinition of falter (Entry 2 of 2)
: an act or instance of faltering
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Other Words from falter
Verb
falterer \ ˈfȯl-tər-ər \ noun
\ nounfalteringly \ ˈfȯl-t(ə-)riŋ-lē \ adverb
\ adverbSynonyms & Antonyms for falter
Synonyms: Verb
- balance,
- dither,
- halt,
- hang back,
- hesitate,
- scruple,
- shilly-shally,
- stagger,
- teeter,
- vacillate,
- waver,
- wobble
- (also wabble)
Antonyms: Verb
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Examples of falter in a Sentence
Verb
The business was faltering due to poor management.
Their initial optimism has faltered.
signs that the economy is faltering
Her steps began to falter.
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Recent Examples on the Web: Verb The passing game faltered against Florida and LSU, but so did the entire offense.
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Giana Han, al, "Grading Auburn’s 2019 season," 5 Jan. 2020 Just like against the Buckeyes in November, U-M's offense burst out of the gates and faltered late.
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Orion Sang, Detroit Free Press, "Michigan football's reality unchanged after Citrus Bowl loss: Not quite elite," 1 Jan. 2020 The host Bulldogs faltered in the fourth quarter of their Big East opener as the Pirates outscored them 24-8.
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Staff Reports, Indianapolis Star, "State college basketball: Notre Dame men win, women lose," 29 Dec. 2019 Golden State, up 3-1 in the series at that point, faltered without Green and never recovered.
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Susan Slusser, SFChronicle.com, "The Bay Area’s most forgettable sports moments in an unforgettable decade," 22 Dec. 2019 But negotiations faltered after the United States rejected North Korean demands for broad sanctions relief in exchange for a partial surrender of the North’s nuclear capabilities, at Kim’s second summit with Trump in Vietnam in February.
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BostonGlobe.com, "SEOUL — North Korea said Saturday that it successfully performed another “crucial test” at its long-range rocket launch site that will further strengthen its “strategic nuclear deterrent.”," 15 Dec. 2019 Slowing lending has contributed to faltering economic growth.
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Alexandra Stevenson, New York Times, "China’s Companies Binged on Debt. Now They Can’t Pay the Bill.," 12 Dec. 2019 Georgieva also faces faltering global growth and concern of recessions in Germany and Italy as the U.S.-China trade war weighs on businesses and financial markets.
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Michael Winfrey, Bloomberg.com, "IMF Board Selects Bulgaria’s Georgieva as Managing Director," 25 Sep. 2019 But while Lester faltered later game, Kershaw improved.
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Jorge Castillo, latimes.com, "Dodgers shake off offensive slumber to beat the Cubs," 13 June 2019 Recent Examples on the Web: Noun Scherzer positioned his Nationals to take advantage of any falter by the Astros.
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Michael Powell, New York Times, "For Astros in the World Series, a Surprising Hook and a Sudden Fall," 31 Oct. 2019 The merged entity will have strategic focus and sales heft to rival Boeing Co., but greater diversification across commercial aircraft products and defense contracts, providing more of a buffer should either market falter.
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Washington Post, "Bill Ackman Misses the Mark With His Raytheon Deal Critique," 13 June 2019 The hottest team in the league at the moment and ready to make a play for home-field advantage if New England falters.
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Nate Davis, USA TODAY, "NFL playoff picture after Week 11: Fluid outlook throughout AFC, NFC," 18 Nov. 2019 At a point when the world has seen communism falter as an imperfect system to manage people; democracy seems to be headed down the same road.
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Matt Ford, The New Republic, "Donald Trump’s New Lost Cause," 3 Oct. 2019 Here are 10 leading candidates to take those two slots (and more, if one or more of the front-runners falters).
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Paul Grein, Billboard, "Maren Morris, Eric Church, Thomas Rhett & More Front-Runners for Best Country Album at 2020 Grammys," 21 Oct. 2019 Still, high confidence is probably playing a role in keeping the United States out of a recession, even as other parts of the world falter.
13.
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Heather Long, Washington Post, "The Trump economy vs. the Obama economy, in 15 charts," 20 Aug. 2019 With small donors, success can breed success, but a falter on the trail can touch off a cash crisis.
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Evan Halper, Los Angeles Times, "Small donors don’t cut it for many Democratic candidates. Back to the rich," 4 Sep. 2019 His pace is as electric as ever, his passing crisp as could be and well, even when his finishing falters, those aforementioned German defenders are more than willing to oblige.
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SI.com, "90min's Definitive European Player Power Rankings: International Break Special," 9 Sep. 2019
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'falter.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for falter
falter
verbEnglish Language Learners Definition of falter
: to stop being strong or successful : to begin to fail or weaken
: to begin to walk or move in an unsteady way
: to feel doubt about doing something
See the full definition for falter in the English Language Learners Dictionary
falter
verbfal·ter | \ ˈfȯl-tər \
\faltered; faltering
Kids Definition of falter
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Time Traveler for falter
The first known use of falter was in the 14th century
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