Dictionary

vacillate en · VERB

Pronunciation

• /ˈvæ.sɪ.leɪt/
• (US) audio
• /ˈvæ.sə.leɪt/

Etymology

From Latin vacillātum, supine form of vacillō (“sway, waver”). By surface analysis, Latin vacill- + -ate.

Meanings

1. (intransitive) To sway unsteadily from one side to the other; oscillate.
   • Its [the barometer's] normal register in the Paumotus [the Tuamotus] was 29.90, and it was quite customary to see it vacillate between 29.85 and 30.00, or even 30.05; […] 1910, Jack London, The Heathen:
2. (intransitive) To swing indecisively from one course of action or opinion to another.
   • Courageous, patriotic, yet vacillating, many of the noblest principles and the purest intentions, men of large possessions and ancient names, under the afflicting circumstances of the times, failed to render service to their unhappy country, but involved themselves in irremediable ruin. 1842, [anonymous collaborator of Letitia Elizabeth Landon], chapter XXIX, in Lady Anne Granard; or, Keeping up Appearances. […], volume II, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC, page 68:
   • Though it is vital to be alert for circumstances which require a change of plan, it is fatal to vacillate. 1944 October, I. A. Horowitz, “Readers' Games”, in Chess Review:
   • On the streets of Berlin, Ruth and her compatriots vacillated "between hope and despair." 2004, Chris Wallace, Character: Profiles in Presidential Courage:
   • Oliveira couldn’t seem to decide if the point of his videos was to make a point about welfare — he vacillates between claiming Orthodox Jews are engaged in fraud and acknowledging they legitimately qualify for programs like Medicaid and food stamps that he doesn’t think taxes should pay for, at least when it comes to large Jewish families — or to hold up the Jewish communities in Kiryas Joel and Lakewood as models for white Americans. 2026 February 25, Arno Rosenfeld, “After Minneapolis, a YouTuber comes for Jewish ‘welfare queens’”, in The Forward, archived from the original on 27 Feb 2026:

Forms

Deriveds

vacillative

Relateds

vacillating · vacillatory · vacillant · vacillator · vacillation

Synonyms

blow hot and cold (to swing indecisively) · waffle (to swing indecisively) · stagger (to sway from one side to the other)

Translations (61)

ka მერყეობა (to swing from one course of action or opinion to another) · it vacillare (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · fi soutaa ja huovata (to swing from one course of action or opinion to another) · fr vaciller (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · ru колеба́ться (to swing from one course of action or opinion to another) · cs váhat (to swing from one course of action or opinion to another) · ka რხევა (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · ko 흔들리다 (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · cmn 搖擺不定 /摇摆不定 (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · ka ყოყმანი (to swing from one course of action or opinion to another) · ru кача́ться (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · bg колебая се (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · it oscillare (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · la vacillō (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · bg двоумя се (to swing from one course of action or opinion to another) · is bera kápuna á báðum öxlum (to swing from one course of action or opinion to another) · it esitare (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · de schwanken (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · ka რწევა (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · es trastabillar (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · de schwanken (to swing from one course of action or opinion to another) · el ταλαντεύομαι (to swing from one course of action or opinion to another) · es trastrabillar (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · ar تَذَبْذَبَ (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · kl nakimavoq (to swing from one course of action or opinion to another) · es titubear (to swing from one course of action or opinion to another) · ko 흔들리다 (to swing from one course of action or opinion to another) · es vacilar (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · tr bocalamak (to swing from one course of action or opinion to another) · nl weifelen (to swing from one course of action or opinion to another) · fr hésiter (to swing from one course of action or opinion to another) · la duabus sellis sedeo (to swing from one course of action or opinion to another) · fi horjua (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · fi epäröidä (to swing from one course of action or opinion to another) · fi huojua (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · fi horjua (to swing from one course of action or opinion to another) · es tambalear (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · nl wankelen (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · ru колеба́ться (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · bg колебая се (to swing from one course of action or opinion to another) · pt vacilar (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · it ondeggiare (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · pt vacilar (to swing from one course of action or opinion to another) · es vacilar (to swing from one course of action or opinion to another) · ka რყევა (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · el ταλαντεύομαι (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · la vacillō (to swing from one course of action or opinion to another) · es tambalearse (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · ca vacil·lar (to swing from one course of action or opinion to another) · la aestuō (to swing from one course of action or opinion to another) · tr yalpalamak (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · mi tātāu (to swing from one course of action or opinion to another) · ca vacil·lar (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · tr sendelemek (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · bg люлея се (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · cs kolísat (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · fi heilua (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · it dubitare (to swing from one course of action or opinion to another) · it sbandare (to sway unsteadily from one side to the other) · cmn 犹豫不定 (to swing from one course of action or opinion to another) · bg не се решавам (to swing from one course of action or opinion to another)