unsteady

CEFRB1

/ʌnˈstɛdi/

adjective · verb

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    adjective

    Not firm, balanced, or regular in movement or position.

  2. 02

    adjective

    Extra detail

    Inconstant in purpose, or volatile in behavior.

Examples

  • I drank too much and was unsteady on my feet.

  • I observed that his hands were unsteady.

At a glance

Sits at B1 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
2
Citations
1
Synonyms
5

Deep Dive

adjective

Extra meanings

  1. Lacking regularity or uniformity.

  2. Not held firmly in position; physically unstable.

verb

Extra meaning

  1. To render unsteady, removing balance.

More examples

In context

  • A slightly unsteady item of furniture.

Synonyms

Antonyms

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

The old man's hands were so blank that he could not pour tea without spilling.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Origin

adjective

From un- + steady. Like steady, the word first appeared in English around 1530. The word is comparable to Old Frisian onstedich, Low German unstadig, etc.