fluctuating
Never staying steady
Fluctuating describes something that rises and falls irregularly over time.
Prices fluctuate with market conditions.
Temperatures fluctuate between day and night.
A fluctuating mood shifts unpredictably.
The word implies repeated, irregular change rather than a single shift or steady trend: Her fluctuating energy levels made it hard to plan anything.
Liable to sudden change
- erraticLacking regularity or consistency
- inconsistentLacking steady uniformity
- unpredictableCannot be anticipated
- unsteadyLacking balance or stability
variable · mercurial · capricious · fickle · temperamental · irregular · sporadic · fitful
Changing in degree
- changingBecoming something else
- shiftingChanging position or form
- adjustingAltering to correct
- modifyingChanging partially
altering · deviating · diverging · ranging · differing · transitioning · evolving · adapting
Swinging back and forth
- alternatingOccurring in turns
- cyclingRiding on two wheels
- pulsingBeating with rhythm
- swingingMoving in arcs
vibrating · undulating · wavering · seesawing · pendulum · rhythmic · periodic · ebbing
Amounts charged for goods
- marketsTrade gathering places
- currencyMedium of exchange
- inflationSustained price level increase
- stocksOwnership stakes or inventory
commodities · demand · supply · value · cost · revenue · earnings · index
Periodic sea-level changes
- temperaturesMeasures of heat levels
- seasonsYear's four divisions
- weatherAtmospheric state outdoors
- barometricOf air pressure measurement
humidity · migration · populations · currents · daylight · rainfall · snowmelt · atmospheric
volatile
Liable to sudden change
- erraticLacking regularity or consistency
- inconsistentLacking steady uniformity
- unpredictableCannot be anticipated
unsteady · variable · mercurial · capricious · fickle · temperamental · irregular · sporadic · fitful · turbulent
varying
Changing in degree
modifying · altering · deviating · diverging · ranging · differing · transitioning · evolving · adapting · calibrating
oscillating
Swinging back and forth
- alternatingOccurring in turns
- cyclingRiding on two wheels
- pulsingBeating with rhythm
swinging · vibrating · undulating · wavering · seesawing · pendulum · rhythmic · periodic · ebbing · flowing
prices
Amounts charged for goods
stocks · commodities · demand · supply · value · cost · revenue · earnings · index · trading
tides
Periodic sea-level changes
- temperaturesMeasures of heat levels
- seasonsYear's four divisions
- weatherAtmospheric state outdoors
barometric · humidity · migration · populations · currents · daylight · rainfall · snowmelt · atmospheric · climate
- unevenuneven, irregular, unequal, nonuniform, asymmetric
- unpredictableunpredictable, uncertain, unreliable, erratic, inconsistent
- blood pressuresystolic, diastolic, readings, cuff, hypotension
- energyelectricity, power, oil, fuel, gas
- intensity levelshigh, low, moderate, medium, intense
- intermittentintermittent, sporadic, periodic, on-off, discontinuous
fluctuatingsteady
Fixed, not fluctuating
constant · stable · fixed · unchanging · invariable
fluctuatingcertain
Free from doubt
predictable · reliable · dependable · regular · assured
- currency fluctuationShifts in money's worth
- hormonal fluctuationsChanges in body's chemical messengers
- price fluctuationsChanges in cost levels
- market fluctuationsChanges in trading values
- temperature fluctuationChange in warmth level
- quantum fluctuationBrief energy variance in emptiness