MEANING
To walk, sway, or remain upright with great difficulty, as if about to fall.
Use it for
Words that belong together
- totter down the steps
- totter toward collapse
On the page
He tottered down the steps, gripping the rail.
Nearby words
Word forms
- Base
- totter
- Past tense
- tottered
- Past participle
- tottered
- Present participle
- tottering
Full tense & aspect guide
- Present
- totter
- Present continuous
- am/is/are tottering
- Present perfect
- have/has tottered
- Present perfect continuous
- have/has been tottering
- Past
- tottered
- Past continuous
- was/were tottering
- Past perfect
- had tottered
- Past perfect continuous
- had been tottering
- Future
- will totter
- Future continuous
- will be tottering
- Future perfect
- will have tottered
- Future perfect continuous
- will have been tottering
Choose the auxiliary that agrees with your subject. These are constructions of one word, not separate entries.
Usage notes
Primary category: literary / elevated general. Forms: totter; totters; tottered; tottered; tottering 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. Commonness: moderately common. Third-person singular: totters.
Practice this word in a sentenceYour margin notes
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