1
as in infidelity
lack of faithfulness especially to one's husband or wife
a wife who was long inured to the chronic inconstancy of her husband
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in fluctuation
the frequent and usually sudden passing from one condition to another
the inconstancy of public opinion is such that today's hero may be tomorrow's punching bag
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of inconstancy
Scientific and engineering advances don't do well in the face of such wild swings and inconstancy.
—
Eric Berger, ArsTechnica, 18 Aug. 2025
Europeans, awakened to the danger of American inconstancy, are scrambling to spend trillions more on defense in coming years.
—Adam Rasmi, Time, 20 June 2025
Years of naval inconstancy with repair work drove Vigor Industrial—a once vibrant and growing maritime conglomerate—into the welcoming arms of hedge funds, which wasted no time in striping the company of value.
—Craig Hooper, Forbes, 20 Feb. 2024
Here, Calabazas appears to be holding a toy windmill in one hand and, in the other, a miniature portrait of a woman, perhaps intended by Velázquez as a commentary on the inconstancy of love.
—Washington Post, 22 Feb. 2023
Due to his inconstancy and Angie’s growing attachment, their flimsy relationship operated on a timescale of eras coalescing into matters of historical record.
—Hannah Gold, Harper’s Magazine , 26 Oct. 2022
But, in the hands of the Fleet Foxes, the pastoral feels less like a particular zone in time and more like a space in which to parse ideas of self-reliance, the inconstancy of love, the pain of intimacy, the fear of loss, the sting of betrayal, and the strange but urgent project of hope.
—Brandon Taylor, The New Yorker, 17 Oct. 2022
Over the past 20 years, the United States has undermined its own global leadership by inconstancy.
—Damon Linker, The Week, 9 June 2021
Eric Berger, ArsTechnica, 18 Aug. 2025
Europeans, awakened to the danger of American inconstancy, are scrambling to spend trillions more on defense in coming years.
—Adam Rasmi, Time, 20 June 2025
Years of naval inconstancy with repair work drove Vigor Industrial—a once vibrant and growing maritime conglomerate—into the welcoming arms of hedge funds, which wasted no time in striping the company of value.
—Craig Hooper, Forbes, 20 Feb. 2024
Here, Calabazas appears to be holding a toy windmill in one hand and, in the other, a miniature portrait of a woman, perhaps intended by Velázquez as a commentary on the inconstancy of love.
—Washington Post, 22 Feb. 2023
Due to his inconstancy and Angie’s growing attachment, their flimsy relationship operated on a timescale of eras coalescing into matters of historical record.
—Hannah Gold, Harper’s Magazine , 26 Oct. 2022
But, in the hands of the Fleet Foxes, the pastoral feels less like a particular zone in time and more like a space in which to parse ideas of self-reliance, the inconstancy of love, the pain of intimacy, the fear of loss, the sting of betrayal, and the strange but urgent project of hope.
—Brandon Taylor, The New Yorker, 17 Oct. 2022
Over the past 20 years, the United States has undermined its own global leadership by inconstancy.
—Damon Linker, The Week, 9 June 2021
Recent Examples of Synonyms for inconstancy
Noun
-
Allen, 40, accused her ex-husband of infidelity in various capacities on the 14-track album.—
Lex Goldstein,
PEOPLE,
7 Nov. 2025
-
The film centers on Smita, a small-town housewife whose seemingly ordinary life unravels into a narrative exploring infidelity, deceit and moral ambiguity.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
7 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Many Democrats had hoped that increasing development of alternative power sources, particularly solar and wind, would provide cheaper electricity as renewable energy is not subject to the erratic pricing and market fluctuation dynamics of fossil fuel sources.—
Tom Rogers,
MSNBC Newsweek,
6 Nov. 2025
-
This could result in small fluctuations in the current of these jets that generate magnetic fields that cause further instability.—
Robert Lea,
Space.com,
5 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Bianca filed for divorce on the grounds of adultery in 1978, a year after Mick started seeing model Jerry Hall.—
Marina Watts,
PEOPLE,
30 Oct. 2025
-
As China’s economy has grown, so too has its incidence of adultery.—
Sheri Linden,
HollywoodReporter,
23 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Casimir said the plates would act as a kind of guillotine for the electromagnetic field, chopping off long-wavelength oscillations in a way that would skew the zero-point energy.—
George Musser,
Quanta Magazine,
5 Jan. 2026
-
The oscillation of a standing wave is a seiche.—
Jeanine Santucci,
USA Today,
30 Dec. 2025
Noun
-
In June 2025, Peacock revealed the latest slate of celebrities set to battle it out in a high-stakes game of lies, alliances and betrayal inside a castle in the Scottish Highlands — all for a chance to win up to $250,000.—
Samantha Stutsman,
PEOPLE,
8 Jan. 2026
-
Rumors of treason, incompetence and betrayal swirled.—
Antonio María Delgado,
Miami Herald,
8 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
To quit, meanwhile, would be to open themselves to charges of disloyalty or weakness or both.—
Foreign Affairs,
Foreign Affairs,
16 Dec. 2025
-
Even after Trump’s November 2024 win, Duncan still called himself a Republican, despite the Georgia Republican Party expelling him in January for disloyalty.—
Taylor Millard,
The Washington Examiner,
31 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
His plays gleefully plumb the wickedest aspects of the human psyche, delivering tales of relentless conquest, Jewish perfidy, deals with the devil, and gay love.—
Isaac Butler,
The Atlantic,
3 Nov. 2025
-
The ignorance, the hubris, the lies, the perfidy.—
Wesley Stenzel,
Entertainment Weekly,
31 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Inconstancy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/inconstancy. Accessed 9 Jan. 2026.
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