inconstant

adjective

in·​con·​stant (ˌ)in-ˈkän(t)-stənt 

: likely to change frequently without apparent or cogent reason

inconstantly adverb

Synonyms

• capricious
• changeable
• changeful
• fickle
• flickery
• fluctuating
• fluid
• inconsistent
• mercurial
• mutable
• skittish
• temperamental
• uncertain
• unpredictable
• unsettled
• unstable
• unsteady
• variable
• volatile

Choose the Right Synonym for inconstant

inconstant, fickle, capricious, mercurial, unstable mean lacking firmness or steadiness (as in purpose or devotion).

inconstant implies an incapacity for steadiness and an inherent tendency to change.

an inconstant friend

fickle suggests unreliability because of perverse changeability and incapacity for steadfastness.

performers discover how fickle fans can be

capricious suggests motivation by sudden whim or fancy and stresses unpredictability.

an utterly capricious critic

mercurial implies a rapid changeability in mood.

made anxious by her boss's mercurial temperament

unstable implies an incapacity for remaining in a fixed position or steady course and applies especially to a lack of emotional balance.

too unstable to hold a job

Examples of inconstant in a Sentence

the inconstant nature of the business

our windjammer sailed wherever the inconstant winds took us

Recent Examples on the Web

In March, Johnson ordered the first national lockdown, caught COVID, and later spent three nights in the I.C.U. For months, the country staggered from one set of restrictions to the next—a reflection of Johnson’s inconstant attitude toward the virus. —Sam Knight, The New Yorker, 25 Mar. 2024

Song as a different kind of time, as heroin became her own inconstant clock. —Elizabeth Barber, Harper's Magazine, 2 Feb. 2024

That’s the one constant in this inconstant series. —Dave Hyde, Sun Sentinel, 28 May 2022

Oedipus and the Riddle Quadruped in the dawn, erect at noon, and wandering on three legs across the blind spaces of afternoon; so the eternal Sphinx saw her inconstant brother, Man. —Sean Carroll, Discover Magazine, 19 Aug. 2011

The moon is earth’s closest, albeit inconstant, companion. —Korey Haynes, Discover Magazine, 11 June 2019

West Virginia has fielded some of the Big 12′s toughest defenses under Neal Brown, but is still one game under .500 since 2019 because of inconstant offense. —Dallas News, 13 July 2022

Despite their impact, these inventions trickled across Eurasia, because trade was slow and inconstant. —Razib Khan, Discover Magazine, 2 Sep. 2011

Turgenev was also indecisive, inconstant, maybe even a bit unreliable. —Keith Gessen, The New Yorker, 29 Aug. 2022

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin inconstant-, inconstans, from in- + constant-, constans constant

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

inconstant

adjective

in·​con·​stant (ˈ)in-ˈkän(t)-stənt 

: likely to change frequently without apparent reason : changeable

Medical Definition

inconstant

adjective

in·​con·​stant ˈin-ˈkän(t)-stənt 

: not always present

an inconstant muscle