tottering

[ tot-er-ing ]

adjective

1. walking unsteadily or shakily.
2. lacking security or stability; threatening to collapse; precarious:

   a tottering empire.

Other Words From

• totter·ing·ly adverb
• un·totter·ing adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of tottering¹

totter + -ing ²

Example Sentences

Hope as a concept would not have worked for Biden, whose age and mental acuity were in question and who seemed to be tottering toward the election with little wind in his political sails.

From Los Angeles Times

The singer’s sweeping eyeliner, tottering heels and disheveled beehive are still instantly recognizable, 13 years after her death.

From New York Times

The beauty, the lusciousness, the humor and playfulness, the nuance are all here ... the movement of the heron in flight, of fish in the water, the tottering old aunties.

From Los Angeles Times

A complex of 13 high-rises by the sea was pounded to dust near Gaza City’s al-Shati refugee camp, leaving only a few tottering bits of the facade, according to the photos by Maxar Technologies.

From Washington Times

A complex of 13 high-rises by the sea was pounded to dust near Gaza City’s al-Shati refugee camp, leaving only a few tottering bits of facade.

From Seattle Times