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vacillare

to waver

verb vah-cheel-LAH-reh Rare
Mind & Emotions Mental States

Origin: From Latin vacillare (to sway).

Also means

to totter

Usage Note

Vacillare describes both physical unsteady movement (la fiamma vacillava — the flame flickered) and metaphorical instability (la sua fede vacillava — his faith was wavering). It is intransitive and takes avere as its auxiliary. It is used in both literary and everyday registers.

Examples

"La sua fiducia ha cominciato a vacillare."

Natural Translation

His confidence began to waver.

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