Unstable Meaning
/ʌnˈsteɪ.bəl/Definition, CEFR level B1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
Listen pronunciation
Definition
adjNot stable.
adjHaving a strong tendency to change.
Sentence Examples
Future prospects for ASEAN seem unstable, no matter how you look at it.
Fortune is unstable, while our will is free.
CEFR Practice Quiz
The ladder was ____ because one of its legs was broken, so I did not climb it.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The situation in the region remains highly ____, with protests continuing in several of the major cities today.
Word Origin & History
From Middle English unstable; equivalent to un- (not) + stable.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"The hillside at this point is composed of shaly rock overlaid with a peaty loam which carries a growth of heather, and its unstable condition has resulted in two landslides in the course of the railway's history."
— 1943 March and April, “A British Avalanche Shelter”, in Railway Magazine, page 80:
"The dawn of the oil age was fairly recent. Although the stuff was used to waterproof boats in the Middle East 6,000 years ago, extracting it in earnest began only in 1859 after an oil strike in Pennsylvania.[…]It was used to make kerosene, the main fuel for artificial lighting after overfishing led to a shortage of whale blubber. Other liquids produced in the refining process, too unstable or smoky for lamplight, were burned or dumped."
— 2013 August 3, “Yesterday’s fuel”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8847:
"All of the characters in Rocko's Modern Life are anthropomorphic animals of varying species, the vast majority of whom are mentally unstable. Murray said that he matched personalities of his characters to the various animals in the series to form a social caricature."
— 2024 May 29, Brie Hoffler, “Chaos Ride: Episode 2 APK”, in tialalnafi (Usenet):
"When the last tune of music floated from the fleet, he unstabled his quarter horse and headed for the coastal road leading west and north on his circuit."
— 1992, Elizabeth Darracott Wheeler, Sir John Dodderidge, Celebrated Barrister of Britain, 1555-1628:
Explore More B1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The ladder was ____ because one of its legs was broken, so I did not climb it.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The situation in the region remains highly ____, with protests continuing in several of the major cities today.