waver
part of speech
verb (waver, wavers, wavered, wavering)
meaning for a pupil
1) To be unsure and keep changing your mind; to hesitate: she wavered between the red and the blue. tree →
2) To become weaker or less steady: his courage wavered. tree →
3) To move or shake unsteadily: the candle flame wavered. tree →
4) Of a voice: to shake. tree →
sense in the lessons
In the Tanakh and Jewish tradition: To waver is to doubt or slip in loyalty to God. The psalmist claims to trust God without wavering. Interpretation: Tradition values steady faith and loyalty, and the prophet's call is to return to God without turning back and forth. In the primary lessons: Used in stories to show doubt or fear: the hero's courage wavers. Everyday: wavering between choices. Values: «unwavering» loyalty. Science: a flame wavers in a draught. Toad's good promises always waver when he sees a motor car.
examples
- Judge me, O LORD, for I have walked in mine integrity, and I have trusted in the LORD without wavering. (Writings PSA.26.1, JPS 1917) tree →
- If thou wilt return, O Israel, saith the LORD, yea, return unto Me; and if thou wilt put away thy detestable things out of My sight, and wilt not waver; (Prophets JER.4.1, JPS 1917) tree →
- She wavered between the two puppies. tree →
- His voice wavered as he spoke. tree →
- Toad's good resolutions wavered at the sound of a horn. tree →
- The candle flame wavered in the wind. tree →
- Her courage never wavered. tree →
- He wavered at the edge of the diving board. tree →
- But the prince did not waver, and declared he would abide by his words. tree →
note
Regular verb: wavered, wavering. Homophone trap: waver (to hesitate) and waiver (giving up a right, in law). Adjective: unwavering = steady, never doubting.
In the corpora
- Judge me, O LORD, for I have walked in mine integrity, and I have trusted in the LORD without wavering.
- The Rat sees how much the Mole wants it, and wavers.
- «The Rat saw what was passing in his mind, and wavered.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «waver» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.