SuaviloquyToday’s word

wavering

Waver, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Wavered; p. pr. & vb. n. Wavering.] — Webster enters it under “waver”

Etymology: [OE. waveren, from AS. wæfre wavering, restless. See Wave, v. i.]

1. To play or move to and fro; to move one way and the other; hence, to totter; to reel; to swing; to flutter. With banners and pennons wavering with the wind. Ld. Berners. Thou wouldst waver on one of these trees as a terror to all evil speakers against dignities. Sir W. Scott.

2. To be unsettled in opinion; to vacillate; to be undetermined; to fluctuate; as, to water in judgment. Let us hold fast . . . without wavering. Heb. x. 23. In feeble hearts, propense enough before To waver, or fall off and join with idols. Milton.

Syn. -- To reel; totter; vacillate. See Fluctuate.

1 other Webster entry under this spelling

Waver, n.

A sapling left standing in a fallen wood. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

Shades of meaning

Fernald lists wavering only as an antonym, under faithful, obstinate.

He lists it without comment; the entries above explain its neighbors.

Synonyms

none given