Adjacent Words

Fluctuate definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

FLUC'TUATE, v.i. [L. fluctuo, from fluctus, a wave, from fluo, to flow.]
1. To move as a wave; to roll hither and thither; to wave; as a fluctuating field of air.
2. To float backward and forward, as on waves.
3. To move now in one direction and now in another; to be wavering or unsteady. Public opinion often fluctuates. Men often fluctuate between different parties and opinions. Hence,
4. To be irresolute or undetermined.
5. To rise and fall; to be in an unsettled state; to experience sudden vicissitudes. The funds or the prices of stocks fluctuate with the events of the day.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

v
1: cause to fluctuate or move in a wavelike pattern
2: move or sway in a rising and falling or wavelike pattern; "the line on the monitor vacillated" [syn: fluctuate, vacillate, waver]
3: be unstable; "The stock market fluctuates"

Merriam Webster's

verb (-ated; -ating) Etymology: Latin fluctuatus, past participle of fluctuare, from fluctus flow, wave, from fluere — more at fluid Date: 1634 intransitive verb 1. to shift back and forth uncertainly 2. to ebb and flow in waves transitive verb to cause to fluctuate Synonyms: see swing • fluctuation noun • fluctuational adjective

Oxford Reference Dictionary

v.intr. vary irregularly; be unstable, vacillate; rise and fall, move to and fro. Derivatives: fluctuation n. Etymology: L fluctuare f. fluctus flow, wave f. fluere fluct- flow

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Fluctuate Fluc"tu*ate, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Fluctuated; p. pr. & vb. n. Fluctuating.] [L. fluctuatus, p. p. of fluctuare, to wave, fr. fluctus wave, fr. fluere, fluctum, to flow. See Fluent, and cf. Flotilla.] 1. To move as a wave; to roll hither and thither; to wave; to float backward and forward, as on waves; as, a fluctuating field of air. --Blackmore. 2. To move now in one direction and now in another; to be wavering or unsteady; to be irresolute or undetermined; to vacillate. Syn: To waver; vacillate; hesitate; scruple. Usage: To Fluctuate, Vacillate, Waver. -- Fluctuate is applied both to things and persons and denotes that they move as they are acted upon. The stocks fluctuate; a man fluctuates between conflicting influences. Vacillate and waver are applied to persons to represent them as acting themselves. A man vacillates when he goes backward and forward in his opinions and purposes, without any fixity of mind or principles. A man wavers when he shrinks back or hesitates at the approach of difficulty or danger. One who is fluctuating in his feelings is usually vacillating in resolve, and wavering in execution.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Fluctuate Fluc"tu*ate, v. t. To cause to move as a wave; to put in motion. [R.] And fluctuate all the still perfume. --Tennyson.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(fluctuates, fluctuating, fluctuated) If something fluctuates, it changes a lot in an irregular way. Body temperature can fluctuate if you are ill. ...the fluctuating price of oil. VERB: V, V-ing • fluctuation (fluctuations) Don't worry about tiny fluctuations in your weight... The calculations do not take into account any fluctuation in the share price. N-VAR: usu N in/of n

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

v. n. 1. Oscillate, undulate, wave, be unsteady, rise and fall, roll hither and thither, move to and fro, move up and down. 2. Vary, change, rise and fall. 3. Waver, vacillate, be irresolute or inconstant or unsettled.

Moby Thesaurus

alternate, back and fill, bob, bobble, careen, change, chop and change, coggle, dangle, dither, ebb and flow, equivocate, flounder, flutter, go through phases, intermit, lack regularity, librate, lurch, nutate, oscillate, pendulate, pitch, recur, reel, resonate, return, reverse, ring the changes, rock, roll, seesaw, shake, shift, shilly-shally, shuffle, stagger, swag, sway, swing, teeter, teeter-totter, tergiversate, toss, totter, turn, vacillate, vary, vibrate, wag, waggle, wave, waver, wax and wane, wobble