Adjacent Words

Falter definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

FAL'TER, v.i. [L. fallo, the primary sense of which is to fall short, or to err, to miss, to deviate.]
1. To hesitate, fail or break in the utterance of words; to speak with a broken or trembling utterance; to stammer. His tongue falters. He speaks with a faltering tongue. He falters at the question.
2. To fail, tremble or yield in exertion; not to be firm and steady. His legs falter.
3. To fail in the regular exercise of the understanding. We observe idiots to falter.
FAL'TER, v.t. To sift. [Not in use.]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: the act of pausing uncertainly; "there was a hesitation in his speech" [syn: hesitation, waver, falter, faltering] v
1: be unsure or weak; "Their enthusiasm is faltering" [syn: falter, waver]
2: move hesitatingly, as if about to give way [syn: falter, waver]
3: walk unsteadily; "The drunk man stumbled about" [syn: stumble, falter, bumble]
4: speak haltingly; "The speaker faltered when he saw his opponent enter the room" [syn: bumble, stutter, stammer, falter]

Merriam Webster's

I. verb (faltered; faltering) Etymology: Middle English Date: 14th century intransitive verb 1. a. to walk unsteadily ; stumble b. to give way ; totter <could feel my legs faltering> c. to move waveringly or hesitatingly 2. to speak brokenly or weakly ; stammer <her voice faltered> 3. a. to hesitate in purpose or action ; waver <he never faltered in his determination> b. to lose drive or effectiveness <the business was faltering> transitive verb to utter hesitatingly or brokenly Synonyms: see hesitate • falterer noun • falteringly adverb II. noun Date: 1834 an act or instance of faltering

Oxford Reference Dictionary

v. 1 intr. stumble, stagger; go unsteadily. 2 intr. waver; lose courage. 3 tr. & intr. stammer; speak hesitatingly. Derivatives: falterer n. falteringly adv. Etymology: ME: orig. uncert.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Falter Fal"ter, v. t. To utter with hesitation, or in a broken, trembling, or weak manner. And here he faltered forth his last farewell. --Byron. Mde me most happy, faltering ``I am thine.'' --Tennyson.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Falter Fal"ter, n. [See Falter, v. i.] Hesitation; trembling; feebleness; an uncertain or broken sound; as, a slight falter in her voice. The falter of an idle shepherd's pipe. --Lowell.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Falter Fal"ter, v. t. To thrash in the chaff; also, to cleanse or sift, as barley. [Prov. Eng.] --Halliwell.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Falter Fal"ter, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Faltered; p. pr. & vb. n. Faltering.] [OE. falteren, faltren, prob. from fault. See Fault, v. & n.] 1. To hesitate; to speak brokenly or weakly; to stammer; as, his tongue falters. With faltering speech and visage incomposed. --Milton. 2. To tremble; to totter; to be unsteady. ``He found his legs falter.'' --Wiseman. 3. To hesitate in purpose or action. Ere her native king Shall falter under foul rebellion's arms. --Shak. 4. To fail in distinctness or regularity of exercise; -- said of the mind or of thought. Here indeed the power of disinct conception of space and distance falters. --I. Taylor.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(falters, faltering, faltered) 1. If something falters, it loses power or strength in an uneven way, or no longer makes much progress. Normal life is at a standstill, and the economy is faltering... VERB: V 2. If you falter, you lose your confidence and stop doing something or start making mistakes. I have not faltered in my quest for a new future... VERB: V

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

v. n. 1. Hesitate (in speech), stammer, stutter. 2. Fail, waver, tremble, totter. 3. Hesitate, waver, give way, show weakness, be undecided.

Moby Thesaurus

Bebung, abandon hope, back down, back out, balance, bashfulness, blench, blunder, bob, bobble, boggle, boggling, bounce, bump, careen, career, caution, cautiousness, chatter, chicken, chicken out, compunction, dally, dawdle, debate, delay, deliberate, demur, demurral, desert under fire, despair, despair of, despond, didder, diffidence, dillydally, dither, drag, faltering, fear, fight shy of, flag, flinch, flounce, flounder, flutter, funk, funk out, get cold feet, give up, give up hope, give way, goof off, grimace, halt, hang back, hang in doubt, hang off, have an ague, have qualms, haw, hem, hem and haw, hesitance, hesitancy, hesitate, hesitating, hesitation, hold off, hover, hum, hum and haw, hustle, jactitate, jar, jerk, jib, jig, jigget, jiggle, jog, joggle, jolt, jostle, jounce, jump, labor, lag, linger, loiter, lollygag, lose courage, lose heart, lose hope, lurch, make bones about, mammer, modesty, objection, pause, pitch, pitch and plunge, plunge, ponder, protest, pull back, quail, quake, qualm, qualm of conscience, qualmishness, quaver, quiver, recoil, reel, retreat, rictus, rock, roll, scruple, scrupulosity, scrupulousness, scuttle, seethe, shake, shilly-shally, shilly-shallying, shiver, shock, shrink, shrinking, shudder, shy, shy at, shyness, sink into despair, skedaddle, stagger, stammer, stick at, stickle, stickling, stop to consider, straddle the fence, strain, strain at, struggle, stumble, stutter, sway, swing, tarry, tentativeness, think twice, think twice about, thrash about, tic, topple, toss, toss and tumble, toss and turn, totter, trail, tremble, tremolando, tremolant, tremolo, tremor, trill, trillet, trilleto, trillo, tumble, twitch, twitter, vacillate, vibrate, vibrato, volutation, wallop, wallow, waste time, waver, welter, whine, wince, withdraw, wobble, yield, yield to despair