as in ambivalent
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Dissimilar Words
as in faltering
to show uncertainty about the right course of action
I didn't hesitate to tell them that what they were doing was wrong and that I wanted no part of it
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of hesitating
Rachel Barber, USA Today, 8 May 2026
Walgreens isn’t hesitating to close stores in parts of Chicago where theft is frequent and there are legitimate concerns about the safety of employees and customers.
—The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 6 May 2026
Trump has criticized European countries for rejecting or hesitating to get involved in the war with Iran.
—Npr Staff, NPR, 17 Apr. 2026
The Academy seems comfortable celebrating individual excellence within horror while hesitating to crown its films as definitive achievements.
—Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 17 Mar. 2026
Palmer is the center of the film and building the cast around her initially had Riley hesitating.
—Mikey O'Connell, HollywoodReporter, 13 Mar. 2026
The Names by Florence Knapp After a devastating storm, Cora brings her newborn son to be registered, hesitating when pressured to name him after her controlling husband.
—Kait Hanson, Southern Living, 26 Feb. 2026
Igor Jesus fluffed his lines when Omari Hutchinson sent him through on goal, hesitating too long and allowing Virgil van Dijk to snatch the ball.
—Paul Taylor, New York Times, 23 Feb. 2026
However, if large enterprises are hesitating to commit and implement, that’s a broader industry headwind impacting everyone, not just SAP.
—Trefis Team, Forbes.com, 30 Jan. 2026
Verb
Right now, Taylor said, both sides are hesitating.
—Rachel Barber, USA Today, 8 May 2026
Walgreens isn’t hesitating to close stores in parts of Chicago where theft is frequent and there are legitimate concerns about the safety of employees and customers.
—The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 6 May 2026
Trump has criticized European countries for rejecting or hesitating to get involved in the war with Iran.
—Npr Staff, NPR, 17 Apr. 2026
The Academy seems comfortable celebrating individual excellence within horror while hesitating to crown its films as definitive achievements.
—Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 17 Mar. 2026
Palmer is the center of the film and building the cast around her initially had Riley hesitating.
—Mikey O'Connell, HollywoodReporter, 13 Mar. 2026
The Names by Florence Knapp After a devastating storm, Cora brings her newborn son to be registered, hesitating when pressured to name him after her controlling husband.
—Kait Hanson, Southern Living, 26 Feb. 2026
Igor Jesus fluffed his lines when Omari Hutchinson sent him through on goal, hesitating too long and allowing Virgil van Dijk to snatch the ball.
—Paul Taylor, New York Times, 23 Feb. 2026
However, if large enterprises are hesitating to commit and implement, that’s a broader industry headwind impacting everyone, not just SAP.
—Trefis Team, Forbes.com, 30 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hesitating
Adjective
-
Each hippo has its own habitat, but the animals have been introduced at a distance and seem ambivalent toward one another for now.—
Moná Thomas,
PEOPLE,
6 May 2026
-
Silicon Valley has been too ambivalent about American power for the first quarter of this century.—
Editorial Board,
Washington Post,
4 May 2026
Verb
-
Meanwhile, the company that made their name keeps faltering towards the point of no return.—
Eva Roytburg,
Fortune,
6 May 2026
-
Most of that was driven by faltering corporation tax receipts.—
Keith M. Phaneuf,
Hartford Courant,
1 May 2026
Adjective
-
Votes are still being counted, but heavy losses for Labour are expected to raise questions about Prime Minister Keir Starmer's already shaky leadership.—
Chloe Taylor,
CNBC,
8 May 2026
-
And their partnership at Denver’s mast started off on shaky ground, with Paton coming off a rocky first two seasons with the Broncos.—
Parker Gabriel,
Denver Post,
8 May 2026
Verb
-
And across all networks, just six new shows bow in the fall — with most waiting for post-football homes.—
Michael Schneider,
Variety,
15 May 2026
-
The Sun forms a cazimi with Mercury in Taurus in your 12th House of Reflection, illuminating private thoughts, old patterns, and instincts that have been waiting underneath the noise.—
Tarot.com,
Hartford Courant,
14 May 2026
Adjective
-
This is the Alcaraz who is unbeatable, a man who cut out the vacillating streaks in his game that derailed him in Melbourne and Wimbledon.—
Tim Ellis,
Forbes.com,
8 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
One night, Altman took an Ambien, only to be awakened by his husband, an Australian coder named Oliver Mulherin, who told him that Sutskever was wavering, and that people were telling Altman to speak with the board.—
Ronan Farrow,
New Yorker,
6 Apr. 2026
-
Music is the focal point of each service, with Jeffrey playing guitar and keyboards behind the curtain, singing in a wavering voice reminiscent of Jeff Mangum about the subjects, ideas and feelings that have occupied his mind at various stages of his life.—
Jessica Gelt,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
The Tennessee Titans went back to the streets quizzing random people in their schedule reveal in a twist to the team’s 2023 schedule reveal.—
Teresa M. Walker,
Chicago Tribune,
15 May 2026
-
In 2019, Mohsin went to pick up his mother at her vegetable stand in Nyala, South Darfur, when armed men stormed the area and shot villagers at random.—
Annie Hylton,
New Yorker,
14 May 2026
Adjective
-
As the game went on, Newcastle struggled to play out from the back, opting for aimless long balls.—
Anantaajith Raghuraman,
New York Times,
4 May 2026
-
Gameplay-wise, On the Beach is a bit more conventional than its predecessor, emphasizing familiar stealth and combat mechanics alongside the aimless wandering.—
George Yang,
PC Magazine,
1 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Hesitating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hesitating. Accessed 15 May. 2026.
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