Synonyms of teetering

teetering 1 of 2

adjective

as in tottering

Synonyms & Similar Words

• tottering
• rickety
• precarious
• doddering
• tottery
• infirm
• insecure
• jiggling
• lopsided
• doddery
• wobbly
• jiggly
• staggery
• awry
• uneven
• rocky
• shaky
• tippy
• unsound
• askew
• tipsy
• cockeyed
• wonky
• unstable
• off-kilter
• unbalanced
• wavery
• wabbly
• unsteady

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• stable
• steady
• balanced
• stabilized
• level
• straight
• even
• substantial
• equilibrated
• sound
• sturdy

teetering

2 of 2

verb

present participle of teeter

1

as in faltering

to swing unsteadily back and forth or from side to side

he nervously teetered at the edge of the pool before finally diving in

Synonyms & Similar Words

• faltering
• wobbling
• trembling
• shaking
• tottering
• rocking
• wavering
• shuddering
• lurching
• vibrating
• quivering
• wabbling
• floundering
• stumbling
• quaking
• quavering
• toddling
• reeling
• staggering
• careening
• weaving

2

as in staggering

to move forward while swaying from side to side

the toddler teetered down the rink in her new ice skates

Synonyms & Similar Words

• staggering
• lurching
• tottering
• weaving
• reeling
• rolling
• shuffling
• careening
• waddling
• stumbling
• stomping
• rocking
• swaying
• doddering
• wavering
• wobbling
• floundering
• seesawing
• barging
• pounding
• shambling
• wabbling
• stamping
• blundering
• swagging
• clumping
• scuffling
• scuffing
• lumping
• lumbering
• tramping
• clomping
• galumphing
• tromping

3

as in hesitating

to show uncertainty about the right course of action

was teetering on the brink of making a decision about college

Synonyms & Similar Words

• hesitating
• faltering
• wavering
• vacillating
• balancing
• staggering
• wobbling
• debating
• wabbling
• halting
• waiting
• dithering
• hanging back
• swaying
• pausing
• lingering
• scrupling
• pondering
• weighing
• delaying
• shilly-shallying
• procrastinating
• hemming
• hawing
• deliberating
• dawdling
• oscillating
• backing down
• waffling
• considering
• hedging
• dallying
• equivocating
• chickening (out)
• pussyfooting

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• deciding
• plunging (in)
• diving (in)
• continuing
• stirring
• advancing
• budging

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of teetering

Verb

An economy teetering on collapse, US sanctions, the pandemic, shortages of medicine and food, a failing electrical grid, and the economic and political choices of the Cuban state. —Lydia Bell, Condé Nast Traveler, 24 Dec. 2024

There are images of students teetering on stilts, of kids who look too small to be there playing with toy soldiers in a puddle of milk. —Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 20 Dec. 2024

The world is bracing for another energy crisis this winter, with natural gas markets teetering on the brink of volatility. —Dan Eberhart, Forbes, 12 Dec. 2024

For over a month, the national average gas price has been teetering on the edge of dropping below $3 for the first time in three years, according to AAA. —Maia Pandey, Journal Sentinel, 12 Dec. 2024

This big band take of a song already teetering on irredeemable absurdity, wants to be lush and seductive. —Melissa Ruggieri, USA TODAY, 10 Dec. 2024

In 2015, Assad’s regime was teetering when Russia intervened to save the dictatorship. —Benjamin Weinthal, Fox News, 8 Dec. 2024

Hegseth's nomination has been teetering, though, amid a series of revelations about his personal life. —Nick Penzenstadler, USA TODAY, 6 Dec. 2024

Just as Paris’ Notre-Dame cathedral rises from the ashes, France’s government is teetering on the brink of collapse. —Alexander Smith, NBC News, 4 Dec. 2024