Vacillations

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The act of waver or fluctuate between different opinions or actions; a state of indecisiveness or uncertainty regarding choices; instances of swinging back and forth in decision-making or feelings about a subject
2. The constant shifting back and forth in attitudes or beliefs; a repeated uncertainty that hampers decision-making; the oscillation between conflicting choices without resolution
3. A tendency to alternate between varying states of mind or preference; a regular occurrence of indecision that prevents firm conclusions; moving repeatedly from one viewpoint to another without commitment

Etymology: The plural form "vacillations" simply denotes repeated instances of the state described by "vacillation," which comes from Latin "vacillātiō," meaning "swaying." That Latin noun was built on the verb "vacillāre," to sway or totter, and it passed into Middle English as "vacillacion," a learned borrowing that kept the physical sense of rocking back and forth. The English noun is formed by adding the suffix "-ion" to "vacillate," so the word's modern sense of hesitating between options grew out of a much more literal image of something unsteady on its feet. Over time the physical swaying was transferred to the mind, so that a person who keeps changing their opinion is pictured as being pushed back and forth like a wobbling object.

Synonyms: oscillations, fluctuations, waverings, hesitations, uncertainties

Antonyms: decisions, certainties, resolutions, stabilities