Word · Frequency #11436
waver
摇摆；摇曳；飘动
to swing or wave in the air; to flutter
- 1.
To swing or wave, especially in the air, wind, etc.; to flutter.
摇摆；飘动
- 2.
To begin to weaken or show signs of weakening in resolve; to falter, to flinch, to give way.
动摇；退缩
- 3.
To feel or show doubt or indecision; to be indecisive between choices; to vacillate.
感到或表现出怀疑或犹豫不决；在抉择间摇摆；动摇。
- 4.
Of a body part such as an eye or hand, or the voice: to become unsteady; to shake, to tremble.
指眼睛、手等身体部位或声音:变得不稳；颤抖。
- 5.
Of light, shadow, or a partly obscured thing: to flicker, to glimmer, to quiver.
闪烁；颤动
- 6.
Chiefly of a quality or thing: to change, to fluctuate, to vary.
主要指品质或事物:变化,波动,变动。
动摇；减弱；退缩；犹豫；迟疑；拿不定主意；颤抖；发抖；发颤；闪烁；忽明忽暗；摇曳；波动；起伏；变化不定
In use
She wavered between the two job offers for days before making a decision.
The committee wavered over whether to approve the new policy.
She wavered for a moment, then agreed to join the trip.
Verb forms
base waver · third person wavers · -ing wavering · past wavered · past participle wavered
规则动词，过去式和过去分词加-ed，现在分词加-ing，第三人称单数加-s。
Connections
Collocations
- waver between
- 在…之间摇摆不定；犹豫不决
- They wavered between staying home and going out.他们在待在家里还是出去之间犹豫不决。
- waver in one's resolve
- 决心动摇；意志不坚定
- Despite the setbacks, she never wavered in her resolve to become a doctor.尽管遇到挫折，她成为医生的决心从未动摇。
- voice wavers
- 声音颤抖；嗓音发颤
- His voice wavered with emotion as he thanked the audience.他感谢观众时，声音因激动而颤抖。
- flame wavers
- 火焰摇曳；火苗闪烁
- The candle flame wavered and then went out.蜡烛火焰摇曳了一下，然后熄灭了。
- waver on an issue
- 在某问题上犹豫不决；立场动摇
- The mayor wavered on the proposal for weeks before approving it.市长对这个提案犹豫了数周才批准。
Learner notes
Memory Tip
wave（波浪、挥手）加上 -r，来回摇摆的样子；心里也跟着“摇摆”就成了犹豫动摇。
Context & Register
语域：formal 常见场景：formal writing、news reports、speeches waver 通常用于书面或正式语境，多表示“犹豫不决”“动摇”或“摇摆不定”；日常口语中更常说 hesitate 或 be unsure。
Grammar Note
不及物动词，常与between/in/over连用。
Pronunciation & Spelling
同韵词：quaver /ˈkweɪvə/、favor /ˈfeɪvə/、flavor /ˈfleɪvə/；waiver /ˈweɪvə/ 与 waver 同音但拼写不同。wave /weɪv/ 与 waver 前部相同，但缺少末尾的 /ə/，不是完整同韵。注意 hover /ˈhɒvə/ 形似但元音不同，不要读成 /ˈweɪvə/。
Usage priority
Collins 词频等级为 1，建议结合例句记忆，而不是只背中文释义。
Learn the forms together
页面下方列出了常见词形变化。学习时注意它们在句子中的语法位置。
Dictionary facts from ECDICT, WIKTIONARY, WORDNET.