Categories: GeneralSynonyms

UNSTEADY: Synonyms and Related Words. What is Another Word for UNSTEADY?

Need another word that means the same as “unsteady”? Find 38 synonyms and 30 related words for “unsteady” in this overview.

The synonyms of “Unsteady” are: unfirm, unstable, rocky, wobbly, wobbling, rickety, shaky, tottery, tottering, unsafe, unbalanced, unreliable, insecure, not secure, unfastened, unsecured, movable, precarious, irregular, uneven, varying, variable, erratic, jerky, volatile, spasmodic, sporadic, changeable, changing, fluctuating, wavering, vacillating, inconstant, intermittent, fitful, desultory, occasional, unsystematic

Unsteady as an Adjective

Definitions of "Unsteady" as an adjective

According to the Oxford Dictionary of English, “unsteady” as an adjective can have the following definitions:

  • Liable to fall or shake; not steady in position.
  • Not regular in pitch or rhythm.
  • Not firmly or solidly positioned.
  • Subject to change or variation.

Synonyms of "Unsteady" as an adjective (38 Words)

changeableSubject to change.
Changeable moods.
changingMarked by continuous change or effective action.
desultoryOccurring randomly or occasionally.
The desultory conversation faded.
erraticLikely to perform unpredictably- Osbert Lancaster.
Her breathing was erratic.
fitfulActive or occurring spasmodically or intermittently; not regular or steady.
Fitful or interrupted sleep.
fluctuatingRising and falling irregularly in number or amount.
Fluctuating prices.
inconstantFrequently changing; variable or irregular.
Inconstant affections.
insecureNot safe from attack.
Badly paid and insecure jobs.
intermittentStopping and starting at irregular intervals.
Intermittent rain.
irregularFailing to meet a standard of manufacture due to an imperfection.
Their involvement in irregular financial dealings.
jerkyContemptibly foolish.
He makes mischief with his jerky pals.
movableCapable of being moved.
They stripped the town of all movable objects and fled.
not secureFree from danger or risk.
occasionalOccurring from time to time.
Occasional headaches.
precariousAffording no ease or reassurance.
He made a precarious living as a painter.
ricketyInclined to shake as from weakness or defect.
A rickety table.
rockyFull of hardship or trials.
On high rocky heels.
shakyNot secure; beset with difficulties.
After a shaky start the Scottish team made superb efforts.
spasmodicCaused by, subject to, or in the nature of a spasm or spasms.
Spasmodic fighting continued.
sporadicRecurring in scattered and irregular or unpredictable instances.
A city subjected to sporadic bombing raids.
tottering(of a structure) shaking or swaying as if about to collapse.
A tottering skeleton of a horse.
totteryUnsteady in gait as from infirmity or old age.
A tottery old man.
unbalanced(of a person) emotionally or mentally disturbed.
She considered him to be mentally unbalanced and dangerous.
unevenNot regular, consistent, or equal.
An uneven gait.
unfastenedNot tied.
The car door was unfastened.
unfirmNot solid or secure.
An unfirm stance.
unreliableDangerously unstable and unpredictable.
In the early 1950s computers were large and expensive and unreliable.
unsafeInvolving or causing danger or risk; liable to hurt or harm.
Drinking water in some areas may be unsafe.
unsecuredOf a creditor having made an unsecured loan.
The maid had been responsible for leaving the room unsecured.
unstableDisposed to psychological variability.
Unstable political conditions.
unsystematicNot done or acting according to a fixed plan or system; unmethodical.
He works in an unsystematic manner.
vacillatingUncertain in purpose or action.
He was accused of vacillating leadership.
variableMarked by diversity or difference.
Awards can be for variable amounts.
varyingMarked by diversity or difference.
Varying degrees of success.
volatile(of a person) liable to display rapid changes of emotion.
A passionate volatile young man.
waveringMoving in a quivering way; flickering.
She gave a wavering smile.
wobbling(of sound) fluctuating unsteadily.
A low pitched wobbling sound.
wobbly(of a person or voice) tending to move out of tone or slightly vary in pitch.
A wobbly soprano.

Usage Examples of "Unsteady" as an adjective

  • He was very unsteady on his feet.
  • An unsteady voice.
  • Nathan pushed the mug into her unsteady hand.
  • His hand was unsteady as he poured the wine.
  • Her unsteady walk.
  • Climbing carefully up the unsteady ladder.
  • His deep voice was unsteady.

Associations of "Unsteady" (30 Words)

agitatedTroubled emotionally and usually deeply.
Agitated parents.
arrhythmicNot rhythmic; without rhythm or regularity.
An arrhythmic heartbeat.
capriciousChangeable.
Authoritarian rulers are frequently capricious.
changeableAble to be changed or exchanged.
Changeable moods.
erraticLikely to perform unpredictably.
Erratic behavior.
fickleMarked by erratic changeableness in affections or attachments.
Fickle friends.
flickeringShining unsteadily.
The flickering flames cast long shadows.
insecureNot safe from attack.
A rather gauche insecure young man.
irregularA member of an irregular military force.
Irregular troops.
labileLiable to change.
Persons whose blood pressure is more labile will carry an enhanced risk of heart attack.
mercurialA drug or other compound containing mercury.
Mercurial twists of temperament.
precariousNot securely held or in position; dangerously likely to fall or collapse.
A precarious truce.
quicksilverThe liquid metal mercury.
His quicksilver wit.
randomGoverned by or involving equal chances for each item.
Unlike other fan mail from randoms this was special.
rickety(of a structure or piece of equipment) poorly made and likely to collapse.
A rickety table.
shakyShaking or trembling.
A shaky marriage.
shifting(of soil) unstable.
He drifted into the shifting crowd.
shiftyConstantly changing; shifting.
Shifty winds.
shiveringA sensation of cold that often marks the start of an infection and the development of a fever.
Sparkling light from the shivering crystals of the chandelier.
straddleA noncommittal or equivocal position.
He turned the chair round and straddled it.
uncertainNot established or confirmed.
Everything is uncertain about the army.
undecidedNot settled or resolved.
The jury remained undecided.
unpredictableNot capable of being foretold.
An unpredictable or indeterminable future.
unreliableNot worthy of reliance or trust.
Unreliable information.
unsafeNot safe; dangerous.
Drinking water in some areas may be unsafe.
unsettled(of a bill) not yet paid.
An unsettled state of mind.
unsoundPhysically unsound or diseased.
The tower is structurally unsound.
unstableLacking stability or fixity or firmness.
Unstable political conditions.
variableThe region of light variable winds to the north of the north east trade winds or in the southern hemisphere between the south east trade winds and the westerlies.
The quality of hospital food is highly variable.
volatileA volatile substance a substance that changes readily from solid or liquid to a vapor.
Volatile stocks.
Alexei

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