TOTTERING Synonyms: 69 Similar and Opposite Words

tottering 1 of 2

adjective

ˈtä-tə-riŋ

Definition of tottering

as in shaking

marked by or given to small uncontrollable bodily movements after the accident, she was only able to take a few tottering steps at a time

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

tottering

2 of 2

verb

present participle of totter

as in staggering

to move forward while swaying from side to side tottered around the house as she practiced walking in high heels

Synonyms & Similar Words

as in faltering

to swing unsteadily back and forth or from side to side the figurine tottered precariously for a moment before falling off the shelf

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of tottering

Adjective

Neither of them understands the other’s dynamic with Daniel, and the split-episode format keeps our sympathies teeter-tottering between each woman. — Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 10 Sep. 2025

Verb

In an accompanying cartoon, Spark is caricatured as a sulking giant, tottering above the Tuscan countryside in a pair of high heels. — Literary Hub, 9 June 2026 Among them a City boy wearing three Fit-Bit-type devices, two beautiful Middle Eastern sisters, an outrageously pompous elderly American (sorry; eavesdropping), and several Imelda Marcos lookalikes, tottering out of the treatment rooms with, somehow, their elaborate hairstyles still intact. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 2 June 2026 Models are tottering on the cobblestoned Bond Street with their heels getting stuck in the rivets. — Nate Freeman, Vanity Fair, 13 Feb. 2026 Now, even that tiny effort is tottering. — Mark Z. Barabak, Mercury News, 27 Jan. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for tottering

Adjective

But if instead its excess savings finance unproductive investment at home or drive high household consumption, asset bubbles, or persistent fiscal deficits in the economies of its trading partners, the whole system becomes increasingly shaky.

— MICHAEL PETTIS, Foreign Affairs, 28 Aug. 2026
Cowing is clearly the team’s best option at punt returner, while Watkins has been shaky there during practice.

— Chris Biderman, Sacbee.com, 28 Aug. 2026

Definition of shaky

Verb

The works depicted broken figures staggering toward the viewer in ragged uniforms — in distorted sizes, giant hands and small heads.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 1 May 2026
The works depicted broken figures staggering toward the viewer in ragged uniforms — in distorted sizes, giant hand and small heads.

— ABC News, ABC News, 1 May 2026

Definition of staggering

Verb

Know More Saudi Arabia has been working on several measures in a bid to boost trading volumes on the stock exchange and reenergize new stock listings that had been faltering even before the Iran war spooked investors.

— Matthew Martin, semafor.com, 26 Aug. 2026
The same list of conditions is relevant to the debates about our faltering literacy.

— Christopher Coffman, The Conversation, 24 Aug. 2026

Definition of faltering

Verb

The United States, which had been lurching toward entry in the Second World War, was suddenly and inescapably thrust into global conflict.

— Tracy Grant, Encyclopedia Britannica, 7 Aug. 2026
Republicans see Democrats lurching to the left and embracing socialism as an opening to link their opponents to the far more radical communism.

— Garrett Downs, CNBC, 4 Aug. 2026

Definition of lurching

Verb

The thunder sound was a combination of wobbling window of shades of the ’40s to achieve that old school thunder sound that was layered in with some newer thunderclap sounds.

— Jazz Tangcay, Variety, 19 Aug. 2026
Which is troubling for buildings like 432 Park Avenue, a skyscraper made using white concrete that features heavily in The History of Concrete, wobbling in the wind.

— Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 12 Aug. 2026

Definition of wobbling

Verb

In his view, a prosperous society was teetering on the edge of a meaningful shift toward communitarianism before being yanked back.

— Daniel D'Addario, Variety, 26 Aug. 2026
The Sky spent the last week teetering on the edge, racking up a few last-gasp wins to hold off the looming inevitability of their own elimination.

— Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 25 Aug. 2026

Definition of teetering

Verb

That afternoon, the president, inside the exposition’s ornate Temple of Music, greeted members of the public, shaking hands and warmly inviting them to explore the fair.

— Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 28 Aug. 2026
The handcuffs were taken off, and he was allowed to board, shaking with shock.

— Shimon Prokupecz, CNN Money, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of shaking

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tottered

tottering

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“Tottering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tottering. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of tottering

adjective

verb

Example Sentences

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