instability
Prone to collapse
Instability is the condition of being unstable—liable to change, collapse, or give way.
Physical structures have instability when they might topple or fail.
Political instability suggests a government vulnerable to upheaval.
Emotional instability describes someone whose moods shift unpredictably.
Financial instability signals precarious economic conditions: The instability in the markets spooked investors.
State of public disturbance
- upheavalViolent disturbance of order
- turmoilViolent disturbance or confusion
- chaosComplete disorder and confusion
- coupAbrupt seizure of power
revolt · rebellion · regime · revolution · anarchy · civil · strife · disorder
Persistent apprehensive distress
- uneaseMild persistent worry
- insecurityUncertainty about oneself
- nervousnessState of anxious unease
- distressSevere anxiety or suffering
turmoil · volatility · moodiness · fragility · vulnerability · breakdown · crisis · agitation
Rapid, unpredictable changeability
- recessionProlonged economic decline
- inflationSustained price level increase
- crashSudden violent impact
- downturnEconomic decline period
uncertainty · fluctuation · crisis · depression · bust · speculation · bubble · default
Unsteady side-to-side motion
- shakinessState of quivering
- unsteadinessLack of firm balance
- imbalanceLack of proportion
- teeteringUnstably balanced, nearly falling
tottering · swaying · rocking · precarious · tipping · off-balance · uneven · shifting
Sudden structural failure
- failureLack of success
- weaknessDeficiency in force
- fractureSplit in hard material
- crumblingBreaking down gradually
deterioration · subsidence · buckling · cracking · shifting · foundation · load-bearing · seismic
Tending to respond
- decompositionBreakdown into simpler parts
- radioactiveEmitting nuclear decay particles
- decayGradual organic breakdown
- volatileLiable to sudden change
degradation · breakdown · isotope · half-life · transient · fission · oxidation · corrosion
unrest
State of public disturbance
- upheavalViolent disturbance of order
- turmoilViolent disturbance or confusion
- chaosComplete disorder and confusion
coup · revolt · rebellion · regime · revolution · anarchy · civil · strife · disorder · overthrow
anxiety
Persistent apprehensive distress
- uneaseMild persistent worry
- insecurityUncertainty about oneself
- nervousnessState of anxious unease
distress · turmoil · volatility · moodiness · fragility · vulnerability · breakdown · crisis · agitation · dysregulation
volatility
Rapid, unpredictable changeability
- recessionProlonged economic decline
- inflationSustained price level increase
- crashSudden violent impact
downturn · uncertainty · fluctuation · crisis · depression · bust · speculation · bubble · default · insolvency
wobble
Unsteady side-to-side motion
- shakinessState of quivering
- unsteadinessLack of firm balance
- imbalanceLack of proportion
teetering · tottering · swaying · rocking · precarious · tipping · off-balance · uneven · shifting · tilting
collapse
Sudden structural failure
crumbling · deterioration · subsidence · buckling · cracking · shifting · foundation · load-bearing · seismic · erosion
reactive
Tending to respond
- decompositionBreakdown into simpler parts
- radioactiveEmitting nuclear decay particles
- decayGradual organic breakdown
volatile · degradation · breakdown · isotope · half-life · transient · fission · oxidation · corrosion · catalyst
- instabilityunsteadiness, shakiness, wobbliness, precariousness, imbalance
- twentiestwenties, young adult, early adulthood, emerging adulthood, college grad
- poverty factorsdeprivation, hardship, low income, low wages, joblessness
- changeabilityvariability, mutability, fickleness, inconstancy, fluctuation
- chaosmayhem, chaotic, pandemonium, bedlam, turmoil
- dangersdanger, peril, hazard, risk, menace
instabilitystability
Resistance to displacement
balance · steadiness · equilibrium · firmness · solidity
instabilitystability
Resistance to displacement
emotional stability · steadiness · constancy · equilibrium · equanimity
instabilitystability
Resistance to displacement
order · security · peace · continuity · governance
- mental instabilityDisordered psychological state
- emotional instabilityUnpredictable shifts in feeling
- political instabilityFragile governmental conditions
- economic instabilityUnpredictable financial conditions
- financial instabilityUnreliable economic condition
- plasma instabilitiesCharged gas perturbations