hesitating or undecided; vacillating; doubtful
Origin of hesitant
Classical Latin haesitans: see hesitancy
adjective
The definition of hesitant is someone or something that is tentative, cautious or unsure.
An example of someone who would be described as hesitant is a person who slowly agrees to something even though she is not sure she wants to.
YourDictionary definition and usage example. Copyright © 2018 by LoveToKnow Corp
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"hesitant." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 18 January 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Hesitant>.
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hesitant. (n.d.). Retrieved January 18th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Hesitant
hesitant
Webster's New World College Dictionary, Fifth Edition Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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MLA Style
"hesitant." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 18 January 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Hesitant>.
APA Style
hesitant. (n.d.). Retrieved January 18th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Hesitant
hesitant
adjective
Inclined or tending to hesitate.
Related Forms:
- hes′i·tant·ly
adverb
THE AMERICAN HERITAGE® DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, FIFTH EDITION by the Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries. Copyright © 2016, 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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Cite this page
MLA Style
"hesitant." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 18 January 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Hesitant>.
APA Style
hesitant. (n.d.). Retrieved January 18th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Hesitant
Adjective
(comparative more hesitant, superlative most hesitant)
- Tending to hesitate, wait, or proceed with caution or reservation.
- I am hesitant to recommend him as a manager because he has a short temper.
Anagrams
Origin
See also: hésitantFrom Latin stem of haesitans, present participle of haesitare (“to stick fast, to hesitate”)
English Wiktionary. Available under CC-BY-SA license.
Link to this page
Cite this page
MLA Style
"hesitant." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 18 January 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Hesitant>.
APA Style
hesitant. (n.d.). Retrieved January 18th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Hesitant
Sentence Examples
- We were hesitant to speak candidly in front of Molly.
- Evelyn asked with a hesitant smile.
- He did act hesitant about it, but his encouragement sounded sincere.
- Dean was hesitant to discuss this or any aspects of the job with Ethel.
- She held firm and didn't reveal anything but she was hesitant to lie directly.
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WORDS NEAR hesitant IN THE DICTIONARY
- hesitant
- hesionids
- hesitance
- hesitancies