staggered 1 of 2

adjective

as in overwhelmed

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staggered

2 of 2

verb

past tense of stagger
1
as in lurched
to move forward while swaying from side to side I was so tired last night that I just staggered upstairs to bed without eating dinner

Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in hesitated
to show uncertainty about the right course of action a daunting problem that would make even the most decisive person stagger just a bit

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 staggered
Adjective
Spice brand McCormick & Company may be one company to employ a more staggered pricing strategy. — Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 9 July 2026 Against a team of higher quality, Portugal were less able to prevent Colombia from building through the pitch, with a staggered front three in their defensive shape as Vitinha and Ruben Neves went man-for-man in the middle. — Mark Carey, New York Times, 2 July 2026 This staggered release marks a shift in Amazon MGM Studios' streaming strategy. — Tim Lammers, Forbes.com, 1 July 2026 That came on May 7 before a staggered series of price drops tempered by price-hike rebounds over the last seven weeks amid on-again and off-again peace talks in the Middle East. — Garfield Hylton, The Orlando Sentinel, 29 June 2026 To overcome the physical scaling limits facing modern chip designers, IBM’s new nanostack architecture vertically stacks transistors in a staggered layout to pack more transistors into the same chip space. — Jeremy Hsu, ArsTechnica, 25 June 2026 Your orchid will slowly open its flowers over time, showing off staggered blooms that could easily last the entire summer. — Sophia Beams, Better Homes & Gardens, 25 June 2026 The original announcement nearly three years ago involved a staggered start that would take effect at the professional level in 2028 and all other golfers in 2030. — Mark Harris, FOXNews.com, 18 June 2026 To establish staggered terms, governors in these three branches were elected to one-, two- or three-year terms this year. — Pete Hammond, Deadline, 15 June 2026
Verb
Employers staggered work schedules, commuters mapped alternate routes and many residents avoided the city altogether. — Andrea Clement, AJC.com, 17 July 2026 This proposal establishes staggered 18-year terms of active service, allowing every president to appoint exactly two justices per term. — Dale V.c. Holness, Sun Sentinel, 9 July 2026 Clay Lockhart staggered back to his house, shoulders bent under the weight of grief and the work of digging. — Literary Hub, 9 July 2026 Arrivals were staggered with people having to wait for hours with nothing to do. — Lizzie Lanuza, StyleCaster, 7 July 2026 Airbnb, DoorDash, Reddit, and Snowflake all either shortened the 180 days or staggered them. — Amanda Gerut, Fortune, 3 July 2026 Implementation of the program will be staggered, starting in elementary schools in 2030, for Texas’ more than 5 million students – about 10% of the national total. — Charles J. Russo, The Conversation, 29 June 2026 Since the notices will be staggered, however, some borrowers may have more time. — Adam S. Minsky, Forbes.com, 29 June 2026 The rollout will be staggered, starting with elementary school students in 2030. — CBS News, 26 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for staggered
  1. overwhelmed
  2. lurched
  3. hesitated
  4. bewildered
  5. shuffled
  6. faltered
  7. stunned
  8. rolled
Adjective
  • Her practice continues to focus on helping clients feel informed rather than overwhelmed.
    — Malana VanTyler, USA Today, 15 July 2026
  • The music starts to shift beginning with the third episode, when Lestat becomes overwhelmed by the apparition of his abusive maker and other ghosts, including Claudia, whose killing he’d been forced to witness firsthand.
    — Hannah Giorgis Yohannes, Vanity Fair, 13 July 2026
Definition of overwhelmed
Verb
  • Adams’ shoulders lurched on the bench, while Richards fell to his knees, dug his afro into the grass, and closed his eyes in pain.
    — Henry Bushnell, New York Times, 7 July 2026
  • Initial data indicates both of these earthquakes were strike-slip, Magnani said, meaning one plate lurched past the other along the boundary.
    — Evan Bush, NBC news, 25 June 2026
Definition of lurched
Verb
  • The French back line hesitated for a brief second, anticipating a potential foul, but Porro pressed the advantage and side-footed a shot past Mike Maignan in the 58th minute for the backbreaking goal.
    — Steven Johnson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 15 July 2026
  • Family described him as a kind and humble man who worked hard and never hesitated to help others.
    — Ruben Vives, Los Angeles Times, 14 July 2026
Definition of hesitated
Adjective
  • Away from the bewildered rancher calling out in surprise, away from the Appaloosa.
    — Emily Ruskovich, The Atlantic, 7 July 2026
  • Massachusetts State Police ushered thousands of bewildered attendees into the tunnel.
    — Karissa Waddick, USA Today, 4 July 2026
Definition of bewildered
Verb
  • Bulldozers shuffled right through the rubble to make roads that cut Gaza into separate sections.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 16 July 2026
  • And before several services shuffled their rankings earlier this week, no QB ranked inside the top 20.
    — Grace Raynor, New York Times, 16 July 2026
Definition of shuffled
Verb
  • But nearly everything else has faltered, including the president’s signature legislative initiative to overhaul elections by, in part, requiring votes to provide proof of citizenship.
    — David A. Graham, The Atlantic, 17 July 2026
  • The Sharks nearly made the playoffs last season, but, for a variety of reasons, faltered down the stretch and finished four points behind the Los Angeles Kings for the Western Conference’s second and final wild card spot.
    — Curtis Pashelka, Mercury News, 16 July 2026
Definition of faltered
Adjective
  • Our team reports that as people emerge from the life-or-death struggle for survival, which eclipsed all thought and numbed sensations, their trauma is transforming into a stunned grief.
    — James Gordon, Time, 14 July 2026
  • And when Cape Verde’s Deroy Duarte evened the score with a right footed shot from a difficult angle at the 59-minute mark, the stunned stadium went silent, minus two small spirited clots of Cape Verde fans in the East end zone seats.
    — Michelle Kaufman, Miami Herald, 13 July 2026
Definition of stunned
Verb
  • Instead, his shot cleared a shrubby ridge and rolled to the first cut for a short chip.
    — Brody Miller, New York Times, 14 July 2026
  • However, they would then be rolled to the pad by a transporter and then lifted vertically by a crane with a specialized breakover feature.
    — Chris Young July 12, New Atlas, 13 July 2026
Definition of rolled

Browse Nearby Words

stagger
staggered
staggering
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Cite this Entry

“Staggered.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/staggered. Accessed 18 Jul. 2026.

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Nglish: Translation of staggered for Spanish Speakers

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