Oscillate — meaning, pronunciation & more

Definition

be undecided about something; waver between conflicting positions or courses of action

move or swing from side to side regularly

Pronunciation

🇺🇸American English

/ˈɑːsɪlˌeɪt/

🇬🇧British English

/ˈɒsɪlˌeɪt/

🇮🇳Indian English

/ˈɒsɪlˌeɪt/

3 syllables Say it as /ˈɑːsɪlˌeɪt/.

Examples

He oscillates between accepting the new position and retirement
the needle on the meter was oscillating

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms

vibrate vacillate hover

Parts of Speech

verb	be undecided about something; waver between conflicting positions or courses of action “He oscillates between accepting the new position and retirement”
verb	move or swing from side to side regularly “the needle on the meter was oscillating”

Word Forms

vacillant	adjective	uncertain in purpose or action
vacillation	noun	indecision in speech or action
vacillator	noun	one who hesitates (usually out of fear)
oscillation	noun	the process of oscillating between states
oscillatory	adjective	having periodic vibrations
vibrator	noun	a mechanical device that vibrates
vibration	noun	(physics) a regular periodic variation in value about a mean

Around the World

Europe

🇩🇪German

oszillieren

über etwas unentschlossen sein; Schwanken zwischen widersprüchlichen Positionen oder Vorgehensweisen

🇫🇷French

osciller

être indécis à propos de quelque chose ; hésiter entre des positions ou des plans d’action contradictoires

🇪🇸Spanish

oscilar

estar indeciso sobre algo; vacilar entre posiciones o cursos de acción en conflicto

🇮🇹Italian

oscillare

essere indeciso su qualcosa; oscillare tra posizioni o linee di azione contrastanti

🇳🇱Dutch

oscilleren

ergens onbeslist over zijn; aarzelen tussen tegenstrijdige standpunten of handelwijzen

🇵🇹Portuguese

oscilar

estar indeciso sobre alguma coisa; oscilar entre posições conflitantes ou cursos de ação

🇷🇺Russian

колебаться

быть нерешительным в чем-либо; колебаться между конфликтующими позициями или образами действий

India

🇮🇳Hindi

हिलाना

किसी बात को लेकर अनिर्णीत रहना; परस्पर विरोधी स्थितियों या कार्रवाई के तरीकों के बीच डगमगाना

🇧🇩Bengali

দোদুল্যমান

কিছু সম্পর্কে সিদ্ধান্তহীন হওয়া; বিরোধপূর্ণ অবস্থান বা কর্মের কোর্সের মধ্যে নড়বড়ে

🇮🇳Tamil

ஊசலாடு

எதையாவது பற்றி முடிவெடுக்காமல் இருங்கள்; முரண்பட்ட நிலைகள் அல்லது செயல்பாட்டிற்கு இடையே அலைச்சல்

🇮🇳Telugu

డోలనం

ఏదో గురించి నిర్ణయం తీసుకోకుండా ఉండండి; విరుద్ధమైన స్థానాలు లేదా చర్య యొక్క కోర్సుల మధ్య తడబాటు

🇮🇳Marathi

दोलन

एखाद्या गोष्टीबद्दल अनिश्चित असणे; विरोधाभासी पोझिशन्स किंवा कृतीच्या कोर्स दरम्यान डगमगणे

🇮🇳Gujarati

ઓસીલેટ

કંઈક વિશે અનિશ્ચિત હોવું; વિરોધાભાસી સ્થિતિ અથવા ક્રિયાના અભ્યાસક્રમો વચ્ચે ડગમગવું

🇮🇳Kannada

ಆಂದೋಲನ

ಯಾವುದನ್ನಾದರೂ ನಿರ್ಧರಿಸದಿರುವಿರಿ; ಸಂಘರ್ಷದ ಸ್ಥಾನಗಳು ಅಥವಾ ಕ್ರಿಯೆಯ ಕೋರ್ಸ್‌ಗಳ ನಡುವೆ ಅಲೆದಾಡುವುದು

🇮🇳Malayalam

ആന്ദോളനം

എന്തെങ്കിലുമൊക്കെ തീരുമാനിക്കാതിരിക്കുക; വൈരുദ്ധ്യമുള്ള സ്ഥാനങ്ങൾ അല്ലെങ്കിൽ പ്രവർത്തന ഗതികൾ തമ്മിലുള്ള അലസത

East & Southeast Asia

🇨🇳Chinese

摆动

对某事犹豫不决；在相互冲突的立场或行动方针之间摇摆不定

🇯🇵Japanese

振動する

何かについて迷っていること。相反する立場や行動方針の間で揺れる

🇰🇷Korean

진동하다

어떤 것에 대해 결정을 내리지 못하다; 상충되는 입장이나 행동 방침 사이에서 동요함

🇻🇳Vietnamese

dao động

chưa quyết định về điều gì đó; dao động giữa các quan điểm hoặc đường hướng hành động xung đột

🇹🇭Thai

สั่น

ไม่แน่ใจเกี่ยวกับบางสิ่งบางอย่าง ลังเลระหว่างตำแหน่งหรือแนวทางปฏิบัติที่ขัดแย้งกัน

🇮🇩Indonesian

berpaling

ragu-ragu tentang sesuatu; bimbang antara posisi atau tindakan yang bertentangan

🇵🇭Filipino

umindayog

maging undecided tungkol sa isang bagay; pag-aalinlangan sa pagitan ng magkasalungat na posisyon o kurso ng aksyon

🇲🇾Malay

berayun

tidak membuat keputusan tentang sesuatu; goyah antara kedudukan atau tindakan yang bercanggah

Middle East

🇸🇦Arabic

تتأرجح

يكون مترددا بشأن شيء ما؛ تتردد بين المواقف المتضاربة أو مسارات العمل

🇮🇷Persian

نوسان می کند

در مورد چیزی بلاتکلیف بودن؛ تزلزل بین مواضع یا مسیرهای عمل متضاد

🇹🇷Turkish

salınım yapmak

bir konuda kararsız olmak; çelişen konumlar veya eylem planları arasında bocalamak

🇮🇱Hebrew

לְהִתְנַדְנֵד

להיות מתלבט לגבי משהו; להתלבט בין עמדות סותרות או דרכי פעולה

Test Yourself1 / 3

What is the primary definition of the word 'oscillate'?

The primary meaning of 'oscillate' is 'be undecided about something; waver between conflicting positions or courses of action'.

Which of the following sentences uses the word 'oscillate' in a grammatically correct way?

Using 'oscillate' in a noun/adjective form makes the first sentence correct.

In which domain is the word 'oscillate' most likely to appear as standard vocabulary?

'oscillate' is a standard word used primarily in general literature and formal communications.

Community Poll1 / 6

How often do you encounter the word 'oscillate' in your daily reading?

Very Often

Occasionally

Rarely

Never

Do you find 'oscillate' easy to spell?

Yes, very easy

Somewhat easy

A bit confusing

Extremely hard

In your opinion, does the word 'oscillate' have a positive, neutral, or gloomy tone?

Positive

Neutral

Gloomy

Vibrant

Which age group is most likely to use 'oscillate' in regular conversations?

Kids (3-12)

Teens (13-19)

Adults (20-60)

Seniors (60+)

How likely are you to use 'oscillate' in a professional email?

Very likely

Somewhat likely

Not very likely

Never

Would you classify 'oscillate' as formal, casual, or slang?

Formal

Casual

Slang

Archaic

Pick an option to see how others voted