to oscillate
3
7.4
- verb
- /ˈɑːsɪleɪt/
:
vacilar
- When the suitcase idea popped into my head, my feelings oscillated between excitement and trepidation.
- oscillates between two extremes
- oscillate between two
I find often don't you feel this, that humans oscillate between extremes.
- I find often don't you feel this, that humans oscillate between extremes.
- No wavering, no oscillating between that, no second guessing, we might say.
- And the point is to oscillate between these never getting stuck on anyone.
- And I'm bouncing back and forth and all of these things are just oscillating.
- The skill is staying true to ourselves here, in good and in bad, not oscillating too much.
- And what Heather and I argue in our book is that the the way human beings get through time is they oscillate between two modes.
- And I I've sort of oscillated between the two and certainly I was one of the first to probably move to low fat milks.
- He says human beings oscillate between peeing, suffering and boredom.
- Others, like Kanayer, oscillate between extreme difficulty and writing themselves.
Examples
-
In practice, Turkish democracy has oscillated between liberal and delegative democracy.
Academic text (2005) -
When McCoy wrestled with proving his own conjecture, he would oscillate between two extremes:
Academic text (2005) -
And the point is to oscillate between these never getting stuck on anyone.
-
And what Heather and I argue in our book is that the the way human beings get through time is they oscillate between two modes.
-
And if you oscillate emotionally up and down drastically, it's going to be problematic.
-
Ryan, this is something that I think a lot of people struggle with where they sort of oscillate between clutter and decluttering.
-
In reality, these ideologies can overlap quite a bit, and most individuals' beliefs probably oscillate across many different ideologies.
Academic text (1992) -
For centuries, Mexico has oscillated between long periods of authoritarian rule and deadly bouts of social strife.
Academic text (1999) -
Argentina and Brazil oscillated between semidemocracies and military authoritarianisms of greater or lesser harshness.
Academic text (1992) -
She tends to oscillate between excitement and anxiety when faced with new challenges.
Synonyms
52
5.7
To show doubt when making a decision
52
6.3
Change often in level or amount, going up and down without a clear pattern
37
5.4
To be unable to decide between different options in your mind
23
5.3
To suddenly change your opinion or decision
8
8.1
To be unable to decide and keep changing between choices
8
7.7
To act nervously and be unable to decide quickly
3
6.6
To feel unsure about making a decision or taking action
1
8.1
To feel very excited about something and then lose interest often
1
8.4
To change your feelings or opinion often and without warning
1
8.2
To change opinions or promises about important matters often without a clear reason
To be unsure and change your mind often
Antonyms
How Uncertain
- Literature
23
5.3
8
8.1
3
7.4
52
5.7
318
2.5
Surface Forms
Morphology
oscillate = oscill + ate
The stem 'oscill-' is a Latinate combining form not a standalone English word, so learners cannot reliably derive the meaning from the components even though '-ate' is a verb-forming suffix.
Etymology
Oscillate comes from the Latin root oscill-, meaning 'to swing'. Imagine a seesaw swinging from one side to the other; that is why oscillate can mean 'to waver between choices or feelings'.