ir·res·o·lute
i-ˈre-zə-ˌlüt 
ˌi(r)-,
-lət
: uncertain how to act or proceed : vacillating
irresolute legislators
: the quality or state of being irresolute
Examples of irresolute in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Noah Feldman, Twin Cities, 24 Dec. 2025
Downtown, in his studio at the corner of White and Cortlandt Alley, on a Thursday evening in late July, Wyeth sat on his stool and considered the irresolute underpainting on his canvas.
—Literary Hub, 14 Oct. 2025
The situation is impossible, irresolute— the B.J. Vineses and priests of the world shouldn’t get to walk away scot free.
—Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 14 Apr. 2025
The prevailing sense among investors and market handicappers entering the month was to expect choppy, irresolute action full of potential scares.
—Michael Santoli, CNBC, 12 Oct. 2024
Showing signs of being irresolute can signal weakness that adversaries take note of.
—Michael Poznansky, Foreign Affairs, 5 Jan. 2024
In some states, the confusion felt by providers and patients is compounded by ambiguous, irresolute language in the new and forthcoming laws themselves.
—Jessica Winter, The New Yorker, 2 July 2022
Vernon’s sea power duly secured the Panamanian export hub of Porto Bello (which would give its name to London’s Portobello Road), but the irresolute Wentworth was ignominiously defeated in his halfhearted attempts to capture Cartagena (in modern-day Colombia) and Santiago, Cuba.
—Washington Post, 10 Nov. 2021
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Adjective
Where Trump is unrelenting and single-minded, the justices have been inconsistent and unpredictable, and therefore appear irresolute.
—Noah Feldman, Twin Cities, 24 Dec. 2025
Downtown, in his studio at the corner of White and Cortlandt Alley, on a Thursday evening in late July, Wyeth sat on his stool and considered the irresolute underpainting on his canvas.
—Literary Hub, 14 Oct. 2025
The situation is impossible, irresolute— the B.J. Vineses and priests of the world shouldn’t get to walk away scot free.
—Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 14 Apr. 2025
The prevailing sense among investors and market handicappers entering the month was to expect choppy, irresolute action full of potential scares.
—Michael Santoli, CNBC, 12 Oct. 2024
Showing signs of being irresolute can signal weakness that adversaries take note of.
—Michael Poznansky, Foreign Affairs, 5 Jan. 2024
In some states, the confusion felt by providers and patients is compounded by ambiguous, irresolute language in the new and forthcoming laws themselves.
—Jessica Winter, The New Yorker, 2 July 2022
Vernon’s sea power duly secured the Panamanian export hub of Porto Bello (which would give its name to London’s Portobello Road), but the irresolute Wentworth was ignominiously defeated in his halfhearted attempts to capture Cartagena (in modern-day Colombia) and Santiago, Cuba.
—Washington Post, 10 Nov. 2021
Cite this Entry
“Irresolute.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/irresolute. Accessed 12 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
irresolute
adjective
ir·res·o·lute
(ˈ)ir-ˈ(r)ez-ə-ˌlüt
-lət
: not resolute : hesitant
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