FALTERED Synonyms: 59 Similar and Opposite Words

faltered

verb

past tense of falter

as in hesitated

to show uncertainty about the right course of action William Lloyd Garrison never once faltered in his demand that slavery be unconditionally abolished

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in trembled

to swing unsteadily back and forth or from side to side the cut tree seemed to falter for a moment before crashing to the ground

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of faltered Had the 747 project faltered, Boeing would likely have gone down with it. —

Ian Bogost, The Atlantic, 12 June 2026 Meanwhile, projects faltered, properties fell into foreclosure, and vulnerable tenants faced displacement and eviction. —

Michele Steeb, Oc Register, 10 June 2026 Market mostly faltered, with the the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite dropping as chip stocks pulled back. —

Lim Hui Jie, CNBC, 10 June 2026 The Red Wings faltered down the stretch in becoming the NHL's second team to have 69 points through 53 games only to miss the playoffs. —

CBS News, 9 June 2026 Much like the previous day’s series finale at Yankee Stadium, Monday night was a close game until the Boston bullpen faltered late. —

Gabrielle Starr, Boston Herald, 9 June 2026 Members of Unite Here Local 11 had authorized the action after contract negotiations faltered with Legends Global, the subcontractor managing food and beverage services at the venue. —

Yash Roy, Bloomberg, 9 June 2026 Every neighborhood has its own part in the story too, as the nightlife nexus has migrated up and down Manhattan, shimmied across the East River and back, and transformed, faltered, and thrived again over the past six decades. —

Arati Menon, Condé Nast Traveler, 7 June 2026 The celebrations start this month, but the party planners seem to have faltered. —

Jonathan Blitzer, New Yorker, 7 June 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for faltered

Verb

Klingberg took a pass from Macklin Celebrini inside the Capitals’ blue line, and hesitated for a moment before Duhaime got on top of him and knocked the puck off his stick and into the neutral zone.

— Curtis Pashelka, Mercury News, 4 Dec. 2025
That risks emboldening other countries that, in the past, might have hesitated to commit such blatant abrogations of international law to follow in the United States’ footsteps, taking their own military actions to serve domestic or foreign policy agendas.

— BRIAN FINUCANE, Foreign Affairs, 26 Nov. 2025