Synonyms of vacillated

vacillated

verb

past tense of vacillate

as in hesitated

to show uncertainty about the right course of action

vacillated for so long that someone else stepped in and made the decision

Synonyms & Similar Words

• hesitated
• faltered
• debated
• wavered
• dithered
• waited
• staggered
• halted
• scrupled
• teetered
• paused
• hung back
• wobbled
• swayed
• balanced
• lingered
• pondered
• hawed
• deliberated
• procrastinated
• delayed
• dawdled
• waffled
• shilly-shallied
• weighed
• hemmed
• equivocated
• oscillated
• dallied
• backed down
• chickened (out)
• considered
• hedged
• pussyfooted

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• decided
• plunged (in)
• continued
• stirred
• dived (in)
• advanced
• budged

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of vacillated

Ellison and his executives have vacillated from anger to acceptance. — Meg James, Los Angeles Times, 12 Aug. 2026

Since then, his game behind the plate has vacillated between good and bad — an inconsistency aggravated by the presence of Luis Torrens (and his defensive excellence) as his backup. — Tim Britton, New York Times, 4 Aug. 2026

Faced with a tough decision, Chiles vacillated. — Miami Herald, 31 May 2026

His government has previously vacillated between pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian positions. — Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 2 May 2026

Trump, in phone calls with reporters over the past two days, has vacillated between warmongering and offering unclear details about further negotiations. — Kevin Breuninger, CNBC, 20 Apr. 2026

Barron vacillated between playing deep in situational dime packages, fitting run gaps as a veritable off-ball linebacker in big-nickel packages, covering tight ends man-to-man, and even started a game at safety. — Luca Evans, Denver Post, 12 Apr. 2026

Their callouts vacillated from descriptions riddled with scientific jargon to exclamations of awe and joy. — Stephen Clark, ArsTechnica, 9 Apr. 2026

Yet Brown, who has vacillated on virtually everything this season, has gone in a different direction. — Kristian Winfield, New York Daily News, 1 Apr. 2026