as in irresolute
Related Words
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Dissimilar Words
as in hesitating
to show uncertainty about the right course of action
vacillated for so long that someone else stepped in and made the decision
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of vacillating
Tim Ellis,
Forbes.com,
8 Sep. 2025
Joe Wilkins,
Futurism,
2 July 2026
Legally an adult but still a teenager and finding your footing in the world, vacillating between feeling invincible and feeling minuscule.
—
Bailey Johnson,
Washington Post,
21 June 2026
The status of further peace talks and other key details of the current relationship between the warring powers have grown increasingly opaque, with Trump vacillating between resuming saber-rattling rhetoric and indicating Washington’s readiness for additional negotiations with Iran.
—
Anniek Bao,
CNBC,
21 Apr. 2026
Trump has been more active than ever on social media in his second term, including posting lengthy all-caps screeds offering vacillating updates on the war.
—
Alexander Smith,
NBC news,
30 Mar. 2026
This hesitation was not the result of vacillating between options in indecision, but an active and regulated brain process to pause before acting due to environmental uncertainty.
—
Eric Yttri,
The Conversation,
12 Feb. 2026
Virginia Ritter spent most of her of the rest of her life vacillating between empathy and anger for her daughter's killer, all the while serving as a fierce victims' rights advocate in Nashville.
—
Brad Schmitt,
Nashville Tennessean,
11 Nov. 2025
By the end of March 2018 Aydın seemed unsure whether to try to clear his name or lay low, vacillating between the two strategies.
—
Moisés Naím,
Literary Hub,
27 Oct. 2025
The actress' create a world that engulfs you into their faux-showbusiness drama, a world of women vacillating between supporting each other and backstabbing to get themselves ahead, with striking performances that led to Oscar nominations for Davis, Ritter, Holm and Baxter.
—
Angela Andaloro,
PEOPLE,
27 Oct. 2025
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
Verb
That has had a ripsaw effect on Musk, who is now vacillating between being the world’s first active trillionaire and the world’s first former-trillionaire.
—
Joe Wilkins,
Futurism,
2 July 2026
Legally an adult but still a teenager and finding your footing in the world, vacillating between feeling invincible and feeling minuscule.
—
Bailey Johnson,
Washington Post,
21 June 2026
The status of further peace talks and other key details of the current relationship between the warring powers have grown increasingly opaque, with Trump vacillating between resuming saber-rattling rhetoric and indicating Washington’s readiness for additional negotiations with Iran.
—
Anniek Bao,
CNBC,
21 Apr. 2026
Trump has been more active than ever on social media in his second term, including posting lengthy all-caps screeds offering vacillating updates on the war.
—
Alexander Smith,
NBC news,
30 Mar. 2026
This hesitation was not the result of vacillating between options in indecision, but an active and regulated brain process to pause before acting due to environmental uncertainty.
—
Eric Yttri,
The Conversation,
12 Feb. 2026
Virginia Ritter spent most of her of the rest of her life vacillating between empathy and anger for her daughter's killer, all the while serving as a fierce victims' rights advocate in Nashville.
—
Brad Schmitt,
Nashville Tennessean,
11 Nov. 2025
By the end of March 2018 Aydın seemed unsure whether to try to clear his name or lay low, vacillating between the two strategies.
—
Moisés Naím,
Literary Hub,
27 Oct. 2025
The actress' create a world that engulfs you into their faux-showbusiness drama, a world of women vacillating between supporting each other and backstabbing to get themselves ahead, with striking performances that led to Oscar nominations for Davis, Ritter, Holm and Baxter.
—
Angela Andaloro,
PEOPLE,
27 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for vacillating
Adjective
-
Both Fortune and Harris express having great empathy for the protagonist, who was an insecure girl that had an irresolute boyfriend and made a grave mistake.
-
Where Trump is unrelenting and single-minded, the justices have been inconsistent and unpredictable, and therefore appear irresolute.
Verb
-
The book does often feel like a recording of a mental jam session, but there is also a sense of being guided by a kind of hesitating yet urgent voice that needs to get things figured out.
-
While their rivals started spending significant sums of money as soon as the 2024-25 season finished, Spurs wasted a couple of weeks hesitating about the long-term future of then head coach Ange Postecoglou before replacing him with Thomas Frank.
Adjective
-
For now, advocates say preparation and persistence are critical as the community faces an uncertain future.
-
The bold story choice, which reunites the staff for what may be their final kitchen service as the restaurant faces an uncertain future, was met with enthusiasm from the cast.
Verb
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Chris Jung | Nurphoto | Getty Images Shares of Nvidia have been faltering recently — and Kalshi traders predict that what the company can charge for chips is also declining.
-
After faltering in last year’s Div.
Adjective
-
Standards are high at the Etihad Stadium after 10 years of Guardiola and Manchester City is counting on Maresca being the right man to keep this going even if many of the club’s own supporters are unsure.
-
People are unsure about the industry for good reason, with everything happening with AI and in the world.
Adjective
-
Basic, an obscure album of oddball electronic rhythms and supremely wobbly guitar released in 1984 by Lou Reed collaborators Robert Quine and Fred Maher.
-
On March 4, the walls of a Travis County courtroom in Austin felt wobbly with grief.
Adjective
-
Real-world error includes sources of error beyond sampling error, such as nonresponse bias, coverage error, late shifts among undecided voters and error in estimating the composition of the electorate.
-
The first post-runoff poll from TPOR in May showed Middleton leading Johnson 44% to 39%, with 13% still undecided.
Adjective
-
The critical reaction was more ambivalent.
-
South Korean public opinion, especially among younger generations, has also grown increasingly ambivalent about the potentially enormous economic and social costs reunification would entail.
Cite this Entry
“Vacillating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/vacillating. Accessed 4 Jul. 2026.
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