hem+and+haw
111fluctuate — [v] vacillate, change alter, alternate, be undecided, blow hot and cold*, ebb and flow, flutter, go up and down*, hem and haw*, hesitate, oscillate, rise and fall*, seesaw*, shift, swing, undulate, vary, veer, vibrate, wave, waver, yo yo*;… …
112swerve — Synonyms and related words: L, aberrancy, aberration, about ship, about the bush, alter, ameliorate, angle, angle off, apex, avoid, back and fill, be changed, be converted into, be renewed, bear away, bear off, bear to starboard, beat, beat about …
113trim — I (New American Roget s College Thesaurus) adj. neat, well ordered, compact, tidy, spruce, smart; slim, lean. v. order, tidy, adjust, dress, arrange; decorate, ornament, adorn; defeat; cheat; balance, equalize; cut, lop, shear, prune, barber;… …
114exception proves the rule, the — A widely misunderstood expression. As a moments thought should confirm, it isn t possible for an exception to confirm a rule but then, that isnt the sense that was originally intended. Prove here is a fossil that is, a word or phrase that is… …
115waver — [v] shift back and forth; be indecisive be irresolute, be unable to decide*, blow hot and cold*, change, deliberate, dilly dally*, dither, falter, flicker, fluctuate, halt, hedge, hem and haw*, hesitate, oscillate, palter, pause, pussyfoot… …
116recoil — Synonyms and related words: about the bush, antagonism, antipathy, avoid, avoidance, backfire, backlash, backlashing, backwash, balk, bashfulness, beat around, beg the question, blanch, blench, blink, boggle, boggling, boomerang, bounce, bounce… …
117mumble — I (New American Roget s College Thesaurus) v. t. mutter, murmur, mouth. See stammering. II (Roget s IV) v. Syn. mutter, murmur, utter, whine, whimper, rumble, grumble, maunder, ramble on, whisper, speak indistinctly, speak inarticulately, swallow …
118shilly-shally — I (New American Roget s College Thesaurus) v. i. vacillate, waver; dawdle, loiter. See uncertainty, inactivity. II (Roget s IV) v. Syn. falter, waver, fluctuate; see hesitate , pause . III (Roget s 3 Superthesaurus) v. hesitate, wave, vacillate,… …
119vacillate — verb I vacillated between teaching and journalism Syn: dither, waver, be indecisive, be undecided, be ambivalent, hesitate, be of two minds, blow hot and cold, keep changing one s mind, be conflicted; fluctuate, oscillate, hem and haw; informal… …
120falter — v 1. hesitate, waver, hover, hang in the balance, vacillate, oscillate; fluctuate, blow hot and cold, alternate, go back and forth between; be undecided, Inf. straddle the fence, dilly dally, shilly shally; hem and haw, delay, waste time, trifle …