dither
verb
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Definition of dither
(Entry 1 of 2)
dither
nounDefinition of dither (Entry 2 of 2)
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Other Words from dither
Verb
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noun
Noun
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adjective
Synonyms & Antonyms for dither
Synonyms: Verb
balance, falter, halt, hang back, hesitate, scruple, shilly-shally, stagger, teeter, vacillate, waver, wobble (also wabble)
Synonyms: Noun
fluster, fret, fuss, huff, lather, pother, stew, sweat, swelter, swivet, tizzy, twitter
Antonyms: Verb
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Examples of dither in a Sentence
Verb
We don't have time to dither. She did not dither about what to do next.Noun
Grandma usually gets in a dither if I don't make my weekly call. we were all in a dither while we waited for the test results
Recent Examples on the Web: Verb
As firearm deaths ticked up and Congress dithered, many nonprofits, universities, and states have devoted resources to fill in the glaring gap left by the lack of federal funds. — Wired, "The CDC Could Totally Study Gun Violence—It Just Needs Money," 7 Aug. 2019 Perot was the first billionaire businessman to describe Washington as cesspool of dithering careerists who spent tax dollars foolishly and cut ruinous trade deals at the expense of blue collar workers, a theme that may sound familiar. — Major Garrett, CBS News, "Analysis: What's missing from the Ross Perot obituaries," 11 July 2019 So far, however, American regulators and lawmakers have mostly dithered over how to tackle the thorny issues surrounding the emergence of cryptocurrencies, like protecting consumers and keeping out criminals. — John Harney, Fortune, "‘Little Standing or Dependability:’ Trump Lashes Out at Facebook’s Libra Cryptocurrency," 12 July 2019 Foreign governments, including the U.S., dithered while Rwandans died. — Walter Russell Mead, WSJ, "Legacy of an African Genocide," 1 Apr. 2019 That seems a better use of our time than dithering about, say, which running shoe to buy. — Maya Singer, Vogue, "Is There Really Such a Thing as “Ethical Consumerism?”," 4 Feb. 2019 In the middle is Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, dithering between his green supporters and his desire to placate Alberta and keep its money flowing. — Holman W. Jenkins, WSJ, "Green Politics and Global Instability," 22 Jan. 2019 In typical fashion, Ms. Merkel dithered forcefully through several party elections, hinting that the snafu would be fixed at the expense of German auto makers, not taxpayers or car owners. — Holman W. Jenkins, WSJ, "The Lessons of ‘Dieselgate’," 4 Jan. 2019 Quality candidates are dithering Given these geographic realities, there is simply no easy path to a Senate majority for Democrats. — Matthew Yglesias, Vox, "Democrats need some 2020 Senate candidates," 6 Dec. 2018Recent Examples on the Web: Noun
To keep migrants comfortable while Democrats in Congress dither on humanitarian aid, the Trump Admin bought bedroom furniture from Wayfair. — NBC News, "Wayfair workers walkout to protest company's furniture sale to migrant detention center," 26 June 2019 Instead, he and scriptwriter Taylor Sheridan (who wrote the original) dither away into subplots, including one that is ludicrously contrived and seems designed to continue the franchise. — Peter Keough, BostonGlobe.com, "‘Sicario’ sequel straddles the border," 28 June 2018 Followers have long suspected that Bey at the very least would release new music before the tour was over, so the arrival announcement promptly sent the internet into a dither. — refinery29.com, "You Are Not Beyoncé. You Do Not Want To Get Paid Only In Equity.," 18 June 2018 In some ways that's a relief; you won't be tempted to dither. — Brian Barrett, WIRED, "Google's New Tasks App Keeps Your To-Do List Front and Center," 25 Apr. 2018 Manchester United are the only club to have made an approach for Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski while Real Madrid dither according to Kicker in Germany. — SI.com, "German Report Claims Man Utd Have Made Approach for Bayern Star as Real Madrid Drop Interest," 12 Mar. 2018 In this telling, corporate America has taken action on gay rights, gun control, climate change, and the minimum wage—all while Congress dithers. — Alex Shephard, The New Republic, "The Rise of Corporate Social Responsibility," 6 Mar. 2018 The American steel industry has suffered as the market floods with imports, forcing prices down, all while the Administration dithers and delays over tariffs. — Time, "Why Trump’s ‘Forgotten Man’ Still Supports Him," 15 Feb. 2018 To do less or to dither rather than decide is to shirk our duty and betray the public’s trust. — Gov. Butch Otter, idahostatesman, "Idaho Gov. Butch Otter | Read full 2018 State of the State | Idaho Statesman," 8 Jan. 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'dither.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for dither
dither
verb
English Language Learners Definition of dither
(Entry 1 of 2)
dither
nounEnglish Language Learners Definition of dither (Entry 2 of 2)