falter

verb fal·ter \ ˈfȯl-tər \

|Updated on: 14 Jun 2018

Tip: Synonym Guide

Examples: falter in a Sentence

Definition of falter

faltered; faltering play \ˈfȯl-t(ə-)riŋ\

intransitive verb

1 a : 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

3 a : to hesitate in purpose or action : waver

he never faltered in his determination

b : to lose drive or effectiveness

the business was faltering

transitive verb

: to utter hesitatingly or brokenly

faltered an excuse

—

falterer

play \ˈfȯl-tər-ər\ noun

—

falteringly

play \ˈfȯl-t(ə-)riŋ-lē\ adverb

See falter defined for English-language learners

See falter defined for kids

Examples of falter in a Sentence

The business was faltering due to poor management.
Their initial optimism has faltered.
signs that the economy is faltering
Her steps began to falter.

Recent Examples of falter from the Web

But the explanation for why working memory starts to falter at such a seemingly low threshold has been elusive.

— jordana cepelewicz, WIRED, "When Overtaxed Working Memory Knocks Your Brain Out of Sync," 9 June 2018
With the Sinaitic teachings and the Tabernacle construction in place the Jews should have known better than to falter again.

— rabbi avi weiss, Jewish Journal, "The gift of opportunity is not limitless," 4 June 2018
If for some reason the community of people who believe in Bitcoin were to falter, its value could dissolve overnight.

— kotryna zukauskaite, Smithsonian, "What the Founding Fathers’ Money Problems Can Teach Us About Bitcoin," 20 Mar. 2018
As the Magic’s offense started to falter, their notoriously leaky defense continued to have problems, especially on the glass.

— josh robbins, OrlandoSentinel.com, "Orlando Magic lose to Oklahoma City Thunder 112-105," 27 Feb. 2018
Poor Annaliese continues to falter during the evening portion of the date.

— ashley iaconetti, Cosmopolitan, "Bachelor Recap: You Can't Teach An Old Dog New Tricks," 16 Jan. 2018
The Eagles then put together their best drive, an 80-yarder covering 14 plays, yet again faltered close to the end zone.

— seattle times staff, The Seattle Times, "Philadelphia Eagles beat Atlanta, advance to NFC Championship Game," 13 Jan. 2018
The problem for me is when my wife goes down on me, my full staff starts to falter.

— anna pulley, RedEye Chicago, "Ask Anna: Losing an erection during oral sex," 10 July 2017
The Slidell City Council has signed off on a $62.6 million budget that includes $6.6 million in unencumbered money that Mayor Freddy Drennan said the council might have to direct into spending accounts if sales tax collections falter badly.

— bob warren, NOLA.com, "Slidell approves record $62.6 million budget - with a warning," 23 May 2018

These 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.

Origin and Etymology of falter

Middle English

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1a

See Words from the same year

falter Synonyms

Synonym Discussion of falter

hesitate, waver, vacillate, falter mean to show irresolution or uncertainty. hesitate implies a pause before deciding or acting or choosing.

- hesitated before answering the question

waver implies hesitation after seeming to decide and so connotes weakness or a retreat.

- wavered in his support of the rebels

vacillate implies prolonged hesitation from inability to reach a firm decision.

- vacillated until events were out of control

falter implies a wavering or stumbling and often connotes nervousness, lack of courage, or outright fear.

- never once faltered during her testimony

falter

noun

Definition of falter

: an act or instance of faltering

Recent Examples of falter from the Web

The Broncos are left without a prized rookie QB to take over if Case Keenum falters, but the team around Keenum has been improved.

— mark maske, chicagotribune.com, "AFC draft grades: The Broncos are alone at the top followed by a lot of pass/fails," 30 Apr. 2018
Then again, maybe the Kawhi Leonard-less Spurs falter and find themselves out of the playoff picture for the first time since 1997.

— sam amick, USA TODAY, "Viewer's guide to NBA's wild Western Conference playoff race," 2 Apr. 2018
In other words, a lot of Chinese capital is still eyeing the exits: If global trade falters and U.S. rates rise, China’s currency could be in for another test sooner than many expect.

— nathaniel taplin, WSJ, "Is the Yuan in China’s Trade-War Arsenal?," 13 Apr. 2018
But jobs could be in jeopardy if business falters, critics say.

— c. j. hughes, New York Times, "In the Catskills, New Hope for the Return of Tourism," 27 Mar. 2018
Sinclair anticipates that improved blood flow could be important in helping not just aging tissues and organs, but speeding healing of wounds, particularly for people with diabetes who often lose fingers and toes as their circulation falters.

— alice park, Time, "This Compound Can Reverse Aging in Mice. Will It Work in People?," 22 Mar. 2018
Stockmann is able to persuade his friends, including the editor of the newspaper, that telling the truth about the water is important, but his environmental campaign falters.

— rachel shteir, New York Times, "Ibsen Wrote ‘An Enemy of the People’ in 1882. Trump Has Made It Popular Again.," 9 Mar. 2018
However, his reputation with West Ham supporters was quickly soured following an abysmal start to the following season, seeing his side falter in the league and being threatened with relegation to the Championship.

— SI.com, "Former West Ham Manager Slaven Bilic Reveals He Regrets Not Leaving the Club After 2016/17 Campaign," 26 Feb. 2018
Taking it by position, the Giants might have the edge in several places: right field (Andrew McCutchen, should Yasiel Puig falter), second base (Joe Panik) and catcher (Buster Posey).

— bruce jenkins, San Francisco Chronicle, "Giants’ win helps fans dream of beating Dodgers," 24 Feb. 2018