as in hesitated
to show uncertainty about the right course of action
we dithered all afternoon over whether to go to the park or to the movies and ended up doing neither
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Recent Examples of dithered
People shouted over each other as the performers dithered over ideas and raced around the venue.
—
Matthew J. Palm, The Orlando Sentinel, 10 Jan. 2026
Ao Tanaka should not have dithered and conceded the second set-piece so late into injury time, while the backline should have been more alert to the second ball.
—Beren Cross, New York Times, 29 Sep. 2025
Matthew J. Palm, The Orlando Sentinel, 10 Jan. 2026
Ao Tanaka should not have dithered and conceded the second set-piece so late into injury time, while the backline should have been more alert to the second ball.
—Beren Cross, New York Times, 29 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dithered
Verb
-
Jackson hesitated — the job required him to leave the seminary six months short of graduation.—
Johanna Neuman,
Los Angeles Times,
17 Feb. 2026
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Even then, his father, Chris Oettinger, hesitated to believe his Olympic dreams would become a reality — until the roster was announced last month.—
Lia Assimakopoulos
Dallas Stars,
Dallas Morning News,
6 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Mizzou was successful early but faltered late before hanging on.—
Joseph Pastilha,
Kansas City Star,
19 Feb. 2026
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For all of her dominance across Alpine skiing, in recent years Shiffrin had faltered on the sport’s biggest stage.—
The Sports Desk,
NBC news,
18 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Dithered.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dithered. Accessed 28 Feb. 2026.
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