hesitate
verb
hes·i·tate ˈhe-zə-ˌtāt 
hesitated; hesitating
intransitive verb
1
: to hold back in doubt or indecision
She didn't hesitate when they offered her the job.
2
: to delay momentarily : pause
He hesitated and waited for her to say something.
3
: stammer
transitive verb
: to hold back from (doing or saying something) in doubt or uncertainty
Don't hesitate to call if you need something.
hesitater noun
hesitatingly
ˈhe-zə-ˌtā-tiŋ-lē
adverb 
Synonyms
- balance
- dither
- falter
- halt
- hang back
- scruple
- shilly-shally
- stagger
- teeter
- vacillate
- waver
- wobble
- wabble
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
She hesitated and waited for her friend to say something. He hesitated about accepting the job. I sometimes hesitate to say what I am really thinking. I hesitated to come without being asked. I wouldn't hesitate to ask for your help if I felt I needed it. Don't hesitate to call if there is a problem. See More
Recent Examples on the Web Xi has made unifying Taiwan with China a primary goal of his rule, and his defense minister warned in June that Beijing would not hesitate to fight for the island. 
Paul Mozur, BostonGlobe.com, 3 Aug. 2022 This update from Sega of Japan suggests that anyone interested in the Western version of Genesis Mini 2, which will contain Western versions of some games and original Japanese versions of others, should not hesitate to place an order. Sam Machkovech, Ars Technica, 29 July 2022 That reality doesn’t mean that Garland should hesitate to put Trump on trial. Amy Davidson Sorkin, The New Yorker, 24 July 2022 Be open about your emotions regarding the situation, and don’t hesitate to also use the help your company offers. Tytus Gołas, Forbes, 30 June 2022 Many people who have sensitive skin often hesitate to use facial masks in fear of further irritating the skin. Grooming Playbook, The Salt Lake Tribune, 9 June 2022 Coach Eric Flannery didn’t hesitate to use that setback, a 55-54 loss in Norwalk, as motivation. Matt Goul, cleveland, 5 Nov. 2021 Fromm’s thesis in his great work, Escape from Freedom, was a simple one; like Freud before him, Fromm did not hesitate to use the convention of mythic storytelling to make his insight vivid for the common reader. Vivian Gornick, Harper's Magazine, 28 Sep. 2021 Drivers on the street that runs alongside parts of the Santa Fe Trail in East Dallas have become so reckless that some of us hesitate to use that path. Sharon Grigsby, Dallas News, 27 July 2021 See More
Paul Mozur, BostonGlobe.com, 3 Aug. 2022 This update from Sega of Japan suggests that anyone interested in the Western version of Genesis Mini 2, which will contain Western versions of some games and original Japanese versions of others, should not hesitate to place an order. Sam Machkovech, Ars Technica, 29 July 2022 That reality doesn’t mean that Garland should hesitate to put Trump on trial. Amy Davidson Sorkin, The New Yorker, 24 July 2022 Be open about your emotions regarding the situation, and don’t hesitate to also use the help your company offers. Tytus Gołas, Forbes, 30 June 2022 Many people who have sensitive skin often hesitate to use facial masks in fear of further irritating the skin. Grooming Playbook, The Salt Lake Tribune, 9 June 2022 Coach Eric Flannery didn’t hesitate to use that setback, a 55-54 loss in Norwalk, as motivation. Matt Goul, cleveland, 5 Nov. 2021 Fromm’s thesis in his great work, Escape from Freedom, was a simple one; like Freud before him, Fromm did not hesitate to use the convention of mythic storytelling to make his insight vivid for the common reader. Vivian Gornick, Harper's Magazine, 28 Sep. 2021 Drivers on the street that runs alongside parts of the Santa Fe Trail in East Dallas have become so reckless that some of us hesitate to use that path. Sharon Grigsby, Dallas News, 27 July 2021 See More Word History
Etymology
Latin haesitatus, past participle of haesitare to stick fast, hesitate, frequentative of haerēre to stick
First Known Use
1598, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1
Kids Definition
hesitate
verb
hes·i·tate ˈhe-zə-ˌtāt
hesitated; hesitating
1
: to pause before doing something
He hesitated before crossing the stream.
2
: to be unwilling to do something because of doubt or nervousness
Don't hesitate to ask for help.
hesitating 1 of 2
adjective
as in vacillating
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- vacillating
- wavering
- ambivalent
- shaky
- shilly-shally
- shilly-shallying
- scattered
- aimless
- random
- stray
- uncertain
- haphazard
- slapdash
- unreliable
- desultory
- untrustworthy
- dicey
- undependable
- hit-or-miss
- arbitrary
- inconsistent
- erratic
- fluctuating
- unpredictable
- changeful
- volatile
- skittish
- variable
- irregular
- capricious
- changeable
- unstable
- mercurial
- unsettled
- inconstant
- temperamental
- fickle
- versatile
- mutable
- unsteady
- mobile
- adaptable
- flickery
- fluid
- protean
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- certain
- steady
- constant
- even
- settled
- invariable
- predictable
- stable
- stationary
- unvarying
- unchanging
- unchangeable
- changeless
- uniform
- immutable
- sure
- persistent
- abiding
- equable
- permanent
- reliable
- tried
- lasting
- dependable
- durable
- trustworthy
- true
- trusty
- tried-and-true
hesitating
2 of 2verb
as in faltering
to show uncertainty about the right course of action I didn't hesitate to tell them that what they were doing was wrong and that I wanted no part of it Synonyms & Similar Words
- faltering
- waiting
- vacillating
- pausing
- debating
- wavering
- dithering
- halting
- swaying
- wobbling
- hanging back
- wabbling
- scrupling
- staggering
- pondering
- balancing
- shilly-shallying
- teetering
- delaying
- lingering
- procrastinating
- deliberating
- dawdling
- hawing
- considering
- weighing
- hemming
- waffling
- equivocating
- dallying
- backing down
- pussyfooting
- hedging
- oscillating
- chickening (out)
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- deciding
- plunging (in)
- continuing
- stirring
- diving (in)
- advancing
- budging