Waffled

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To express thoughts in a vague or unclear way while also shifting positions frequently and demonstrating inconsistency in decision-making
2. To convey ideas ambiguously and make frequent changes in opinion or stance, often reflecting a lack of resolve
3. To talk or write in a noncommittal and vague manner that avoids clear answers ; to change one's viewpoint or decision multiple times, showing indecision

Etymology: "Waffled" is the past tense and past participle of "waffle," so its story is really the story of the verb. "Waffle" itself is the word that matters: it has long meant to talk or write at length without saying much, and the sense of wavering between positions grew out of that idle, circling chatter. A person who waffles is going round in circles, and the image of endless, empty words is what carries the modern meaning of shifting stance and lacking resolve. Because the base verb already names the behaviour, "waffled" simply follows the regular English pattern of adding "-ed" to mark a completed action. Someone who "waffled" on a decision had been going back and forth, and the past form lets you report that the back-and-forth happened.

Synonyms: hesitated, vacillated, fluctuated, waivered, dithered

Antonyms: decided, resolved