vacillate

/ˌvæsəˈleɪt/

Other forms: vacillating; vacillated; vacillates

Vacillate means to waver back and forth, unable to decide. You might vacillate between ordering waffles and pancakes at your favorite diner — it’s hard to pick just one when both are so tasty!

Something that vacillates sways or fluctuates, often quite unsteadily. So use this verb to describe the staggering motions of a person who has had too much to drink, as well as the opinions of someone who can’t make up her mind. Synonyms include vibrate, hesitate, and waver. A wise Ethiopian proverb advises, "Do not vacillate or you will be left in between doing something, having something, and being nothing.”

Definitions of vacillate

1. verb

   be undecided about something; waver between conflicting positions or courses of action
   synonyms: hover, oscillate, vibrate

   types:

   shilly-shally, shillyshally

   hesitate or be unable to decide; go back and forth on

   type of:

   hesitate, waffle, waver

   pause or hold back in uncertainty or unwillingness
2. verb

   move or sway in a rising and falling or wavelike pattern
   “the line on the monitor vacillated”

   synonyms: fluctuate, waver

   fluctuate

   cause to fluctuate or move in a wavelike pattern

   type of:

   swing

   alternate dramatically between high and low values