Synonyms of faltering

faltering 1 of 3

noun

as in hesitation

a state or an instance of temporary inaction because of uncertainty about the right course of action

when it's so clear that this is the right thing to do, there's no excuse for faltering

Synonyms & Similar Words

• hesitation
• pause
• hesitancy
• hesitance
• delay
• wavering
• wobbling
• indecision
• vacillation
• irresolution
• uncertainty
• deliberation
• waiting
• fence-sitting
• doubt
• shilly-shallying
• reluctance
• shilly-shally
• procrastination
• debate
• consideration
• indecisiveness
• second thought
• hawing
• incertitude
• unwillingness
• arrière-pensée
• indetermination
• timidity
• faintheartedness
• indisposition
• misgiving
• avoidance
• uncertainness
• equivocation
• disinclination
• timidness
• shyness
• aversion

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• determination
• confidence
• resolution
• certainty
• firmness
• certitude
• readiness
• decisiveness
• eagerness
• sureness
• alacrity
• resoluteness

faltering

2 of 3

adjective

as in wobbly

Related Words

• wobbly
• uncertain
• unsure
• questioning
• irresolute
• vacillating
• doubtful
• undecided
• conflicted
• ambivalent
• afraid
• reluctant
• equivocal
• hesitant
• loath
• indisposed
• dubious
• disinclined

Dissimilar Words

• certain
• decided
• resolute
• sure
• unambivalent
• unquestioning

faltering

3 of 3

verb

present participle of falter

1

as in hesitating

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

• hesitating
• vacillating
• wavering
• halting
• dithering
• waiting
• staggering
• wobbling
• debating
• hanging back
• balancing
• pausing
• teetering
• scrupling
• swaying
• lingering
• delaying
• shilly-shallying
• pondering
• dawdling
• procrastinating
• hawing
• weighing
• hemming
• deliberating
• backing down
• considering
• oscillating
• waffling
• equivocating
• hedging
• dallying
• chickening (out)
• pussyfooting

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• deciding
• plunging (in)
• diving (in)
• continuing
• stirring
• advancing
• budging

2

as in trembling

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

• trembling
• wobbling
• shaking
• shuddering
• rocking
• wavering
• tottering
• lurching
• vibrating
• quivering
• teetering
• floundering
• stumbling
• quaking
• quavering
• staggering
• reeling
• toddling
• weaving
• careening

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of faltering

Noun

Reeve doesn’t see the team feeling an urgency to find a solution to its defensive faltering. — Anya Armentrout, Twin Cities, 19 July 2026

Many in town say the struggle to transform Scotia mirrors a larger struggle in Humboldt County, which has been rocked, first by the faltering of its logging industry and more recently by the collapse of its cannabis economy. — Jessica Garrison, Los Angeles Times, 2 Jan. 2026

The Reds' season can be described as consistently inconsistent but playing well down the stretch and the New York Mets faltering has led to an opportunity to get back to the postseason for the first time since 2020. — Jason Hoffman, Cincinnati Enquirer, 26 Sep. 2025

And the media went along with her coverup, despite Biden’s obvious faltering. — Peter Lucas, Boston Herald, 7 Aug. 2025

Adjective

Of course, that means little when even Coker’s career-high performance was not enough for the Panthers’ faltering defense, which gave up a franchise record 59 points. — Charlotte Observer, 14 Sep. 2026

Papadopoulos relies on this faltering system that is now endangered. — Jayme Fraser, USA Today, 7 Sep. 2026

The film spells out the gargantuan payouts that each Boeing CEO has received, despite the crashes and questions about their actions and the company’s faltering value. — Stuart Miller, Los Angeles Times, 19 Aug. 2026

In 2019 and again in 2020, the company launched a pair of spacecraft that latched onto faltering communication satellites and steered them, providing extra years of life. — Marcia Dunn, Fortune, 22 July 2026

As its stock languishes below its IPO price — at press time, $131 — short sellers are going all in against the company, hoping to make a killing off of CEO Elon Musk’s faltering pull on investors. — Frank Landymore, Futurism, 16 July 2026

His visit comes as interlocutors try to revive the faltering diplomatic process after recent strikes between the US and Iran. — Rhea Mogul, CNN Money, 11 July 2026

Traditional oversight from accrediting agencies is faltering, necessitating new approaches. — Michael T. Nietzel, Forbes.com, 8 July 2026

Surely a number of things, but faltering offense would seem to top the list. — Ken Sugiura, AJC.com, 8 July 2026

Verb

The grandees of Gullen have set their hopes on Claire’s bankrolling their faltering community’s recovery. — Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 16 Sep. 2026

Late last year, Kushner was called on to help with the faltering talks to end the war in Ukraine. — Dexter Filkins, New Yorker, 14 Sep. 2026

China will inject $45 billion into its largest banks and insurers, its biggest recapitalization push in decades as Beijing looks to boost the country’s faltering economy. — Jeronimo Gonzalez, semafor.com, 7 Sep. 2026

The same list of conditions is relevant to the debates about our faltering literacy. — Christopher Coffman, The Conversation, 24 Aug. 2026

But to arrest that decline, governments will have to address the faltering state capacity that is driving it. — Jennifer Pahlka, Foreign Affairs, 18 Aug. 2026

After Stearns and Kostyuk won the first six points, the Williams sisters cut the deficit to one before eventually faltering on Venus’ double-fault on the final point. — Anna Lazarus Caplan, PEOPLE, 18 Aug. 2026

The Athletic spoke to those close to Rooney — who did so anonymously to protect relationships — about his transformation from faltering broadcaster to one of the bright points of the national broadcaster’s coverage. — Greg O'Keeffe, New York Times, 1 Aug. 2026

The boy was burly and had a remarkable strength and energy that stayed throughout his life, only faltering in the very last throes of death. — Literary Hub, 20 July 2026