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fickle

adjective
fick·​le | \ ˈfi-kəl How to pronounce fickle (audio) \

Definition of fickle

: marked by lack of steadfastness, constancy, or stability : given to erratic changeableness
Other Words from fickle Synonyms & Antonyms Choose the Right Synonym Example Sentences Learn More about fickle

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Other Words from fickle

fickleness noun
fickly \ ˈfi-​k(ə-​)lē How to pronounce fickly (audio) \ adverb

Choose the Right Synonym for fickle

inconstant, fickle, capricious, mercurial, unstable mean lacking firmness or steadiness (as in purpose or devotion). inconstant implies an incapacity for steadiness and an inherent tendency to change. an inconstant friend fickle suggests unreliability because of perverse changeability and incapacity for steadfastness. performers discover how fickle fans can be capricious suggests motivation by sudden whim or fancy and stresses unpredictability. an utterly capricious critic mercurial implies a rapid changeability in mood. made anxious by her boss's mercurial temperament unstable implies an incapacity for remaining in a fixed position or steady course and applies especially to a lack of emotional balance. too unstable to hold a job

Examples of fickle in a Sentence

The Weak will suck up to the Strong, for fear of losing their jobs and their money and all the fickle power they wielded only twenty-four hours ago. — Hunter S. Thompson, Rolling Stone, 11 Nov. 2004 The corporate fan who has replaced the core fan is a fickle beast, choosy about which games he'll use his precious free time to attend. — E. M. Swift, Sports Illustrated, 15 May 2000 A failed play was a denial of what Odets was owed, for he was chasing the public no differently than did his bourgeois and nonrevolutionary contemporaries, a public as fickle as it always was and is. — Arthur Miller, Harper's, March 1999 War is like hard-drug abuse or a fickle lover, an apparently contradictory bolt of compulsion, agony and ecstasy that draws you back in the face of better judgment time and time again. — Anthony Loyd, My War Gone By, 1999 He blames poor sales on fickle consumers. a fickle friendship that was on and off over the years
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Recent Examples on the Web

 The 6-foot-10, 250-pound Blackshear offers the post presence the Gators have not had the past two years, leading to the team’s over-reliance on the fickle 3-point line. — Edgar Thompson, orlandosentinel.com, "New-look Gators’ basketball team works to meet high expectations," 2 Sep. 2019 Three seasons have passed without a contest at the treacherous break off the coast of Half Moon Bay, thanks to a combination of fickle conditions and political chaos. — Bruce Jenkins, SFChronicle.com, "Latest Mavericks downer: World Surf League pulls out," 30 Aug. 2019 For the first time since 2006, every SEC football team has returned its head coach — perhaps as close as the notoriously demanding, overbearing and fickle conference can come to signaling some form of patience or contentedness. — Alan Blinder, BostonGlobe.com, "A twist for SEC football: No new head coaches," 29 Aug. 2019 After debuting in April 2017 with a solid 2.81 ERA over five starts in his first month, Senzatela’s habit of fickle performances has kept him from cementing himself as an everyday big-league starter. — Kyle Newman, The Denver Post, "Antonio Senzatela to start for Rockies on Sunday in St. Louis, setting up another proving round for the sporadic right-hander," 24 Aug. 2019 WeChat’s share loss underscores the fickle nature of social media platforms. — Adam Seessel, Fortune, "Valuation: Could WeChat Sink Tencent’s Stock?," 25 July 2019 In the past, profits have been considered a fickle friend by business people. — The Economist, "After years of plenty America Inc is struggling to crank out more earnings," 18 July 2019 The 12 equations produced fickle weather, but even so, that weather seemed to prefer a narrow set of possibilities among all possible states, forming a mysterious cluster which Lorenz wanted to visualize. — Joshua Sokol, WIRED, "These Hidden Women Helped Invent Chaos Theory," 26 May 2019 What happened next proved how fickle this game can be. — Peter Schmuck, baltimoresun.com, "Orioles offense wakes up and delivers 6-4 comeback victory over Blue Jays," 4 Aug. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'fickle.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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First Known Use of fickle

13th century, in the meaning defined above

History and Etymology for fickle

Middle English fikel deceitful, inconstant, from Old English ficol deceitful; akin to Old English befician to deceive, and probably to Old English fāh hostile — more at foe

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More Definitions for fickle

fickle

adjective
How to pronounce fickle (audio)

English Language Learners Definition of fickle

: changing often
disapproving : changing opinions often

See the full definition for fickle in the English Language Learners Dictionary

fickle

adjective
fick·​le | \ ˈfi-kəl How to pronounce fickle (audio) \

Kids Definition of fickle

: changing often : not reliable fickle friends fickle weather

Other Words from fickle

fickleness

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