1
as in sporadic
lacking in steadiness or regularity of occurrence
a year of unsteady economic growth
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in volatile
likely to change frequently, suddenly, or unexpectedly
in the days of sailing ships, mariners were constantly at the mercy of unsteady winds
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3
as in unstable
not being in or able to maintain a state of balance
cautiously climbed up the unsteady ladder
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4
as in uneven
not staying constant
unsteady business conditions that rattled investors
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of unsteady
Slow and unsteady Karma: The Dark World is a slow game, both in its exposition and its occasionally frustrating slow walking speed.
—
Matt Gardner, Forbes.com, 28 Mar. 2025
Her hands became too unsteady after 2000 to continue drawing.
—Hilarie M. Sheets, New York Times, 4 Apr. 2025
Something long and meandering like this: For the next four years, the United States will be an unpredictable, unsteady global superpower run by a fascist oligarchy, in which the people’s representatives cater to a madman’s whim.
—Eli Grober, The New Yorker, 24 Mar. 2025
An unsteady job market has contributed to rising scrutiny around large corporations, also a driving theme of the season.
—Leah Asmelash, CNN, 21 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for unsteady
Matt Gardner, Forbes.com, 28 Mar. 2025
Her hands became too unsteady after 2000 to continue drawing.
—Hilarie M. Sheets, New York Times, 4 Apr. 2025
Something long and meandering like this: For the next four years, the United States will be an unpredictable, unsteady global superpower run by a fascist oligarchy, in which the people’s representatives cater to a madman’s whim.
—Eli Grober, The New Yorker, 24 Mar. 2025
An unsteady job market has contributed to rising scrutiny around large corporations, also a driving theme of the season.
—Leah Asmelash, CNN, 21 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for unsteady
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unsteady
Adjective
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Unfortunately, those days are more sporadic and like Hernandez, resembles little to the player who dragged Milan over the line three years ago to steal an unlikely league title.—
Emmet Gates,
Forbes.com,
16 May 2025
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Those moments have grown more sporadic in recent months, with Watkins no longer looked to as Villa’s key source of goals.—
Mark Carey,
New York Times,
12 May 2025
Adjective
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Other big miners, including archrivals BHP, Anglo American and Glencore, have steered clear of lithium, am important metal in batteries, but one which is also abundantly available puts suffers from extremely volatile pricing.—
Tim Treadgold,
Forbes.com,
23 May 2025
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Unlike traditional crypto payment providers that handle numerous volatile currencies, Coinsub Technology strategically specializes in stablecoins.—
William Jones,
USA Today,
22 May 2025
Adjective
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Stage 1: In this stage, inflammation, as well as loose or unstable joints, is present.—
Isabel Casimiro,
Verywell Health,
22 May 2025
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Unfortunately, modeling variations on this orbit through time indicated that 98 percent of them were unstable within 50 million years.—
John Timmer,
ArsTechnica,
22 May 2025
Adjective
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Bread crumbs • Props to the hair, makeup, and costuming departments for differentiating Kiki’s Simone from pre-Michaela Simone, who showed up to the island with a scraggly ponytail, a gray button-down, uneven skin, and scrawled tattoos.—
Caroline Framke,
Vulture,
23 May 2025
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Case for caution: On the flip side, skeptics point to the uneven performances, particularly internationally, and concerns about his hockey sense.—
Corey Pronman,
New York Times,
22 May 2025
Adjective
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Residents lack running water, use 5-gallon buckets as toilets and must contend with intermittent electricity and deteriorating homes that expose them to the region’s fierce weather.—
Emily Schwing,
ProPublica,
29 May 2025
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Holmgren had to take intermittent breaks from the sport because of growing pains.—
Jace Frederick,
Twin Cities,
24 May 2025
Adjective
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Trump’s aggressive and unpredictable policies — including massive import taxes — have clouded the outlook for the economy as well as the job market and raised fears that the American economy is headed toward recession.—
Matt Ott,
Chicago Tribune,
27 May 2025
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Smaller airlines are reportedly being hurt worst by unpredictable travel times.—
Brian Niemietz,
New York Daily News,
27 May 2025
Adjective
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Others that have a small selling history and only a handful of items for sale at a time tend to be occasional sellers and wardrobe clearers.—
Benjamin Voyer,
Forbes.com,
23 May 2025
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The audience is present in a politely distant but receptive way with shots from the back of their heads and an occasional darkened full-theater shot.—
Kathryn VanArendonk,
Vulture,
23 May 2025
Adjective
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Hers is the kind of face that inspires directors to tight framing — gleaming, as if smoothed from marble, and yet somehow pliant, changeful.—
Jordan Kisner Jack Davison,
New York Times,
11 Oct. 2022
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Rigorous, blustery winter; winding sleety spring; hot, moist enervating summer; changeful autumn with its dog-days; these are absolutely unknown.—
San Diego Union-Tribune,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
1 Jan. 2023
Cite this Entry
“Unsteady.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unsteady. Accessed 3 Jun. 2025.
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