Didder

Part of speech: verb, noun

Definitions

1. To shake or quiver slightly, often from cold or nervousness ; to be uncertain or reluctant to make a decision
2. To tremble or vibrate in small movements ; to vacillate or show indecision about something
3. To quiver or shudder with slight movements ; to show hesitation or doubt in committing to a course of action

Etymology: "Didder" is a rare variant of "dither," meaning to tremble or shake, and its history runs through the same Middle English verb. The source traces it to Middle English "didderen," meaning "to tremble," so the word has been about physical shaking from the start, long before it came to mean hesitation or agitation. The verb "dither" is the more familiar form today, and "didder" survives mostly as a regional or older spelling of that same root. Because the two forms descend from one Middle English verb, they carry the same core sense of trembling motion, which is why "didder" still sounds like the shivering it describes.