seesaws
Playground pivot boards
Seesaws are playground devices where two children sit on opposite ends of a balanced plank, alternating up and down.
The word extends to any back-and-forth motion or shifting situation: The lead seesawed between candidates all night.
As a verb, to seesaw is to move in this alternating pattern: Her mood seesawed between hope and despair.
Pivoting playground board
- fulcrumLever's balance point
- pivotPoint of rotation
- plankFlat timber piece
- balanceSteadiness or amount owed
children · recess · park · swing set · playground equipment · handles · seats · wooden board
Pivoting bar for lifting
- fulcrumLever's balance point
- torqueRotational force measurement
- forceStrength or compulsion
- equilibriumState of balance
mechanical advantage · pivot point · load · effort · balance point · center of mass · Newton · simple machine
Repeated back-and-forth movement
- tippingPaying beyond the bill
- rockingOscillating on curved base
- alternatingOccurring in turns
- risingAct of ascending
falling · counterbalance · back-and-forth · tilting · swaying · bobbing · undulation · rhythmic
Irregular change over time
- vacillationInability to choose
- instabilityTendency toward unpredictable change
- reversalComplete change of direction
- shiftMovement or work period
swing · volatility · unpredictability · change · alternation · inconsistency · wavering · oscillating
teeter-totter
Pivoting playground board
balance · children · recess · park · swing set · playground equipment · handles · seats · wooden board · metal frame
lever
Pivoting bar for lifting
equilibrium · mechanical advantage · pivot point · load · effort · balance point · center of mass · Newton · simple machine · angular motion
oscillation
Repeated back-and-forth movement
- tippingPaying beyond the bill
- rockingOscillating on curved base
- alternatingOccurring in turns
rising · falling · counterbalance · back-and-forth · tilting · swaying · bobbing · undulation · rhythmic · shifting
fluctuation
Irregular change over time
- vacillationInability to choose
- instabilityTendency toward unpredictable change
- reversalComplete change of direction
shift · swing · volatility · unpredictability · change · alternation · inconsistency · wavering · oscillating · back-and-forth
- equilibriumequilibrium, balance, stable equilibrium, unstable equilibrium, static equilibrium
- contraption partsgears, levers, pulleys, ramps, wheels
- platformersMario, jump, Sonic, platformer, platforms
- childhoodchildhood, baby, child, kid, toys
- playground gamestag, hide and seek, hopscotch, freeze, capture the flag
- fluctuationsfluctuations, oscillations, variations, swings, waves
seesawsstabilizes
Makes firm or steady
holds steady · stays · steadies · plateaus · levels off