Synonyms

staggered

American

[stag-erd] / ˈstæg ərd /

adjective

arranged in a series of alternating or continually overlapping intervals of time.

Board members serve staggered four-year terms, with new directors replacing outgoing ones each year.
arranged so as to alternate on either side of a center.

A circular base approximately 2 meters in diameter is placed atop a couple of staggered layers of brick to allow for aeration from below.
scheduled or ordered in gradual stages; phased.

Microsoft has confirmed that the new update will be a staggered release.
rendered helpless with astonishment; shocked.

Shakespeare’s King Lear questions everything we know, posing to our staggered imaginations the possibility that the cosmos is immoral, even malevolent.

verb

the simple past tense and past participle of stagger.

Other Word Forms

unstaggered adjective

Etymology

Origin of staggered

stagger ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. )

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

A stunned Clarke somehow stayed upright and staggered back to his corner.

From BBC

The decision was slammed as "amateurish" by former Ashes-winning captain Michael Vaughan, who added that he was "staggered" that they would turn down the opportunity.

From Barron's

The Federal Aviation Administration ordered a staggered reduction in flights at the start of November as the funding lapse began to take its toll on air-traffic controllers.

From Barron's

This is “less than ideal” given a large proportion of its orders have staggered deliveries, the analyst adds.

From The Wall Street Journal

Blockchain data from Glassnode show coins that have been dormant since 2010-13 moving for the first time — not in panic but in “persistent, staggered distribution.”

From MarketWatch

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023