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teeter

English

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teeter¹

  • /ˈtiːtə/ UK
  • /ˈtitəɹ/ US
  • [ˈtʰiɾɚ] US

Where it comes from

Alteration of titter.

verb teeters · teetering · teetered

  1. intransitive To tilt back and forth on an edge. He teetered on the brink of the precipice.
  2. intransitive To totter (move unsteadily). How many other organizations have sprung up amidst apparently unlimited energy, been the focus of a great deal of activism and education, and then begun to diminish? Some teeter along for a long time even though their base of support seems to have eroded; some metamorphose into something else entire
  3. figuratively To be indecisive; to hesitate. We teetered on the fence about buying getaway tickets and missed the opportunity.
  4. figuratively To be close to becoming a typically negative situation. Despite appearances, the firm was teetering on the edge of bankruptcy.

noun teeters

  1. Canada, US A teeter-totter or seesaw.

Teeter²

Where it comes from

Americanized spelling of German Dieter.

proper noun Teeters

  1. A surname from German.

Translations

Every language

verb tilt back and forth on an edge

Españoltambalearse
Portuguêscambalear, vacilar
Françaisbasculer, tituber, branler, vaciller
Deutschschwanken, wankeln, sich winden, taumeln
Русскийкача́ться kačátʹsja, колеба́ться kolebátʹsja

verb to be indecisive

Portuguêstitubear, vacilar

Talk about this word

Cite this
MLA

"teeter." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/teeter. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

teeter. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/teeter

Chicago

"teeter." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/teeter.

BibTeX
@misc{teeter_2026,
  title = {teeter},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/teeter},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}