1
as in falters
to swing unsteadily back and forth or from side to side
he nervously teetered at the edge of the pool before finally diving in
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in staggers
to move forward while swaying from side to side
the toddler teetered down the rink in her new ice skates
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in hesitates
to show uncertainty about the right course of action
was teetering on the brink of making a decision about college
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Recent Examples of teeters
The new series teeters on a bipartisan ledge, carefully including conversations with political figures like former vice presidents Kamala Harris, Mike Pence, Al Gore; former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Republican Senator Ted Cruz.
—
Kalia Richardson,
USA Today,
24 June 2026
The story teeters on implausibility in turn after turn.
—
Christopher Smith,
Oc Register,
9 June 2026
There's an undeniable allure to the pale yellow shade, a saccharine hue that teeters the line on both mellow and bright.
—
Emily Kelleher,
InStyle,
28 May 2026
Everything teeters on the verge of going bad, and weekend plans often get in the way of cooking through them.
—
Kaitlyn Yarborough,
Southern Living,
25 Apr. 2026
Alongside organist Ståle Storløkken and drummer Ole Mofjell, the Hedvig Mollestad Weejuns (the third word a slang term for Norwegians) form a groove that teeters toward explosiveness without ever reaching it.
—
Joshua Minsoo Kim,
Pitchfork,
24 Apr. 2026
For the first time ever my weight now teeters at the tippy, tippy top of that green zone.
—
Petra Guglielmetti,
Glamour,
16 Apr. 2026
But as the region teeters on the brink of a new and dangerous escalation, yet more negative consequences – like the evils that escaped Pandora’s box – could soon be unleashed.
—
Matthew Chance,
CNN Money,
23 Mar. 2026
The country’s already cratering economy now teeters on the verge of collapse, with vehicles idled by a lack of gas, hospitals forced to cancel surgeries and millions living without a steady supply of electricity and water.
—
Kate Linthicum,
Los Angeles Times,
22 Mar. 2026
Kalia Richardson,
USA Today,
24 June 2026
The story teeters on implausibility in turn after turn.
—
Christopher Smith,
Oc Register,
9 June 2026
There's an undeniable allure to the pale yellow shade, a saccharine hue that teeters the line on both mellow and bright.
—
Emily Kelleher,
InStyle,
28 May 2026
Everything teeters on the verge of going bad, and weekend plans often get in the way of cooking through them.
—
Kaitlyn Yarborough,
Southern Living,
25 Apr. 2026
Alongside organist Ståle Storløkken and drummer Ole Mofjell, the Hedvig Mollestad Weejuns (the third word a slang term for Norwegians) form a groove that teeters toward explosiveness without ever reaching it.
—
Joshua Minsoo Kim,
Pitchfork,
24 Apr. 2026
For the first time ever my weight now teeters at the tippy, tippy top of that green zone.
—
Petra Guglielmetti,
Glamour,
16 Apr. 2026
But as the region teeters on the brink of a new and dangerous escalation, yet more negative consequences – like the evils that escaped Pandora’s box – could soon be unleashed.
—
Matthew Chance,
CNN Money,
23 Mar. 2026
The country’s already cratering economy now teeters on the verge of collapse, with vehicles idled by a lack of gas, hospitals forced to cancel surgeries and millions living without a steady supply of electricity and water.
—
Kate Linthicum,
Los Angeles Times,
22 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for teeters
Verb
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And once performance falters, customers are likely to lose faith in your brand.
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Conquerors and autocrats may win the immediate battle by bullying their subjects into submission, but their empires inevitably crumble the moment their iron grip falters.
Verb
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Steely and deliberate songwriting that casually staggers down the line between rhythm and melody, laced with loose yet conscious jams.
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Like many Florida school districts, OCPS staggers start times to most efficiently use its school buses and drivers.
Verb
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In Spearfish, Yu hesitates over a set of cow grates and dumps her bike at low velocity.
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Hassan hesitates over an undercooked backpass, Haaland smells blood, and Iraq are toast.
Verb
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Put plainly, the body that watches over the global financial system, chaired by the governor of the Bank of England, is saying the prices these funds report rest partly on judgment, and that the judgment wobbles precisely when it is tested.
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Sketch a plan for practice, then show up even if motivation wobbles.
Verb
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The film unhurriedly lurches from one markedly similar fight scene to the next, with only Skeletor’s occasional injections of ripe innuendo to liven them up a bit.
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By the end, Noonan’s film stops feeling like a first date and starts to resemble the makings of a crime scene as his mood lurches toward something dangerous.
Verb
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The characters have little time to make life-or-death decisions, let alone ruminate, and the action vacillates between triage and doctors expertly improvising solutions — like Mel (Taylor Dearden) donating her own blood, and Javadi (Shabana Azeez) going MacGyver mode with a tracheal tube.
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In general, game-to-game data vacillates pretty wildly.
Verb
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But The Gilded Age doesn’t do pure villains with its main cast, and Oscar totters between failson and tragic figure, the closeted heir of the Van Rhijn family dragged to hell and back after being defrauded of his mother’s fortune.
Verb
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Andra Day rocks denim trousers to the Inside the Afties event presented by Amazon Music during the Cannes Lions Festival in France on June 24.
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In photos from the spread by photographer Rafael Pavarotti shared on Instagram, Madonna rocks a pale pink corset over a white leotard that peeks out the bottom and top.
Cite this Entry
“Teeters.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/teeters. Accessed 6 Jul. 2026.
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