indecisive

adjective in·de·ci·sive \ ˌin-di-ˈsī-siv \

Updated on: 15 Apr 2018

Definition of indecisive

1 : not decisive : inconclusive

an indecisive battle

2 : marked by or prone to indecision : irresolute

an indecisive state of mind

3 : not clearly marked out : indefinite

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indecisively

adverb

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indecisiveness

noun

See indecisive defined for English-language learners

See indecisive defined for kids

Examples of indecisive in a Sentence

She's always been very indecisive.

Recent Examples of indecisive from the Web

Levinson errs, though, in first making the choice to focus primarily on Paterno, and then failing to develop other aspects of the story that would have helped us understand why Paterno is feeling cornered and indecisive.

— david wiegand, San Francisco Chronicle, "‘Paterno’ couldn’t figure out the play on scandal," 2 Apr. 2018
At the other end, Netherlands only had one chance in the first half as Bas Dost wasted a header from a corner as an indecisive Jordan Pickford only half-heartedly came to claim the ball.

— SI.com, "Netherlands 0-1 England: Jesse Lingard's First International Goal Gives Three Lions Deserved Victory," 23 Mar. 2018
The good news: Taste Indy Food Tours has been healing the indecisive among us.

— domenica bongiovanni, Indianapolis Star, "Food tours, 40oz of rosé, Record Store Day shows & adults in pedal cars," 21 Mar. 2018
As expected, Luyendyk got plenty of backlash for his painfully indecisive ways, so much so that residents in Kufrin's home state of Minnesota want to ban him from ever visiting.

— abby jones, Billboard, "Becca Kufrin Talks Breakup With 'Bachelor' Arie: 'He Found a Better Fit'," 15 Mar. 2018
Peres, portrayed as an unsentimental hard-liner — an interesting contrast to his later dovish reputation — pushes the prime minister, a more emotional and indecisive man, to approve a risky military response.

— a. o. scott, New York Times, "Review: ‘7 Days in Entebbe’ Revisits a Notorious Hijacking," 14 Mar. 2018
For a player whose biggest fault at times is being indecisive on the floor, Labissiere was anything but that in the final seconds.

— jason jones, sacbee, "Confident Labissiere caught the Knicks – and his Kings teammates – off guard in a win | The Sacramento Bee," 4 Mar. 2018
But this constant shuffling of chairs comes off as a little indecisive, yeah?

— paul daugherty, Cincinnati.com, "Daugherty: Once Newport, then Oakley, now West End," 24 Jan. 2018
With the Falcons forced to punt from their 14, Cooper was indecisive and let the ball bounce at about the L.A. 40.

— USA TODAY, "Rams schooled by Falcons in return to playoffs," 6 Jan. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'indecisive.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of indecisive

1726

INDECISIVE Defined for English Language Learners

indecisive

adjective

Definition of indecisive for English Language Learners

: not able to make choices quickly and confidently
: not settling something or making something final or certain

INDECISIVE Defined for Kids

indecisive

adjective in·de·ci·sive \ ˌin-di-ˈsī-siv \

Definition of indecisive for Students

1 : not decisive or final

an indecisive battle

2 : finding it hard to make decisions

an indecisive person

—

indecisively

adverb

Learn More about indecisive

Spanish Central: Translation of indecisive Nglish: Translation of indecisive for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of indecisive for Arabic speakers

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