Thesaurus:hesitate

Thesaurus

hesitate

English

Verb

Sense: to stop or pause respecting decision or action; to be in suspense or uncertainty as to a determination

Synonyms

• boggle
• deliberate
• demur
• dither
• falter
• hesitate
• hover
• mammer (rare)
• scruple
• stand shilly-shally
• stick    [⇒ thesaurus]
• swither (UK dialect)
• waver

Antonyms

• damn the torpedoes (idiomatic)
• decide
• brazen
• grasp the nettle (idiomatic)
• go big or go home (idiomatic)
• resolve
• shoot first and ask questions later (idiomatic)
• shoot from the hip (idiomatic)
• shoot from the lip (idiomatic)
• shoot one's mouth off (idiomatic)

Hypernyms

• doubt
• stop    [⇒ thesaurus]
• pause    [⇒ thesaurus]

Various

• think twice
• vacillate

Further reading

• “485. unbelief, doubt” in Roget's Thesaurus, T. Y. Crowell Co., 1911.
• “70. discontinuity” in Roget's Thesaurus, T. Y. Crowell Co., 1911.
• “hesitate” in Moby Thesaurus II, Grady Ward, 1996.