Synonyms for unstable
- adjective
Most common
shaky wobbly changeable unsteady explosive precarious tottering labile
Synonyms by meaning
Adjective
1. Unsteady — fickle
unsteady, weak, changeable, wobbly, shaky, rocky, volatile, erratic, insecure, unsafe, unsound, inconstant, mentally ill, unsettled, irregular, restless, capricious, fickle, slippery, rickety, mutable, infirm
2. Instable
unbalanced, top-heavy, instable rare
Other
precarious, fluid, labile, explosive, tottering, fissiparous
Definitions
- adj. 1
Fickle.
- adj. 2
Not stable.
The structure is too unstable to stand safely.
Related words
- Word family
- unstableness unstability
Example sentences
- shaky Your plan is standing on a very shaky base support.
- wobbly I tried sitting on that chair, but it was wobbly.
- changeable The weather is very changeable at this time of year.
- unsteady I drank too much and was unsteady on my feet.
- explosive I think I've got the explosive diarrhea parasite.
- precarious Yanni lives a precarious existence in Algiers.
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| unstable | steady | |
| shaky | rising | |
| wobbly | rising | |
| changeable | rising | |
| unsteady | steady | |
| explosive | steady |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 4 letters
- weak1
- 5 letters
- rocky2, fluid2, shaky2
- 6 letters
- unsafe2, fickle2, wobbly3, infirm2, labile
- 7 letters
- erratic3, unsound2, rickety3, mutable3
- 8 letters
- volatile3, insecure3, restless2, slippery3, unsteady3, instable
- 9 letters
- explosive3, irregular4, unsettled3, tottering3
- 10 letters
- precarious4, unbalanced3, changeable3, capricious3, inconstant
- 11 letters
- fissiparous
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (rocky2 = 2 syllables).