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inconstant

inconstant

2 7.5
Changing often and not staying the same
  • adjective
  • /ɪnˈkɒnstənt/
: inconstante
  • Well, contemporary art is a sort of currency there now because its value is so inconstant.

Examples

  • If the North Star was too constant, the Moon was too inconstant.

    Academic text (1991)
  • But I don't despise your life; I don't take lightly your feverish, chaotic, inconstant ideas and moods.

    Fiction book (1994)
  • Perhaps I am a bad, inconstant woman.

  • ''O, swear not by the moon, the inconstant moon,

  • I could see, however, that fashion was raising its inconstant head.

    Fiction book (2002)
  • As the story develops, it seems as if the two women merge to form one generic woman: inconstant and absent.

    Fiction book (1991)
  • His friends show themselves to be as inconstant as a torrential river, icy in winter, vanishing away in the heat.

    Academic text (1998)
  • Nothing is more unreliable or inconstant than a crowd of people, so affirms our Livy, like all the other historians...

    Blog text (27)
  • I swear by yon inconstant moon, whose silvery beams besmears the lost horizon...

  • His opinions are often inconstant, changing from one moment to the next without reason.

Synonyms

unpredictable
vsinconstant
166 4.4

Likely to change suddenly and hard to know in advance

refers to repeated change rather than only being hard to predict
unstable
vsinconstant
128 4.4

Not steady and likely to change, fail, or fall

focuses on frequent change rather than physical weakness or failure
inconsistent
vsinconstant
98 4.7

Not staying the same over time and not agreeing with other facts

emphasizes frequent change rather than disagreement or lack of logic
erratic
vsinconstant
82 6.1

Not regular or predictable and likely to change suddenly

is about frequent change but not emphasising sudden irregular bursts
unreliable
vsinconstant
78 4.1

Not able to be trusted to work or be right

means frequent change rather than a failure to be trusted
intermittent
vsinconstant
36 6.5

Happening sometimes but not all the time

means frequent change rather than occasional on and off periods
flaky
vsinconstant
  • Informal
7 7.0

Tending to fail or change without warning

refers to frequent change rather than informal unreliable behaviour
fluctuating
vsinconstant
6 6.1

Changing up and down often in a way you cannot guess

focuses on frequent change generally rather than only rises and falls
unsettled
vsinconstant
4 4.3

Weather that often changes, bringing rain or strong wind

means frequent change more generally rather than only temporary conditions
undependable
vsinconstant
3 4.7

Likely to fail or disappoint people

refers to repeated change rather than a lack of dependability
unfirm
vsinconstant
1 8.0

Soft ground that moves or sinks easily

focuses on frequent changing rather than lacking physical firmness
nonconstant
vsinconstant
1 6.3

Changing over time and not staying the same

is the same meaning but a different form of the word

Antonyms

59 2.7

Stays the same over time

How Inconstant

faithless
13 5.6
capricious
17 7.9
fickle
40 6.2
inconstant
2 7.5
variable
  • Specialized
170 4.2

Surface Forms

inconstant positive

Morphology

inconstant = constant (transparent) = in + constant

This is a straightforward negative prefixation of 'constant' meaning 'not constant'.

Etymology

The word inconstant is made of in- meaning 'not' and constant meaning 'standing firm' or 'steady'. So, an inconstant person or thing does not 'stand firm' and often keeps changing, which is why it means not steady or reliable.