MEANING
To rise and fall or change irregularly over time.
Use it for
Words that belong together
- fluctuate widely
- fluctuate between levels
On the page
Attendance fluctuated sharply during the winter.
Nearby words
Word forms
- Base
- fluctuate
- Past tense
- fluctuated
- Past participle
- fluctuated
- Present participle
- fluctuating
Full tense & aspect guide
- Present
- fluctuate
- Present continuous
- am/is/are fluctuating
- Present perfect
- have/has fluctuated
- Present perfect continuous
- have/has been fluctuating
- Past
- fluctuated
- Past continuous
- was/were fluctuating
- Past perfect
- had fluctuated
- Past perfect continuous
- had been fluctuating
- Future
- will fluctuate
- Future continuous
- will be fluctuating
- Future perfect
- will have fluctuated
- Future perfect continuous
- will have been fluctuating
Choose the auxiliary that agrees with your subject. These are constructions of one word, not separate entries.
Usage notes
Primary category: academic / formal. Forms: fluctuate; fluctuates; fluctuated; fluctuated; fluctuating Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings. Established modern English lexical item. No separate regional spelling or grammatical inflection entry. Writing functions: change, causation. Commonness: moderately common. Third-person singular: fluctuates.
Practice this word in a sentenceYour margin notes
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