unstable implies an incapacity for remaining in a fixed position or steady course and applies especially to a lack of emotional balance.
too unstable to hold a job
Example Sentences
the inconstant nature of the business our windjammer sailed wherever the inconstant winds took us
Recent Examples on the WebThe former President’s endorsement last month of Oz—a television celebrity who had not lived in Pennsylvania for decades, and whose commitment to conservative principles was at best inconstant—was seen as an out-of-the-box choice.The New Yorker, 15 May 2022 No indications of inconstant constants have yet emerged. Clara Moskowitz, Scientific American, 1 Feb. 2021 As the paranoid Lise grows convinced that her husband is plotting to induce her to commit suicide, the voices ratchet up, accusing her of various offenses: of being an inattentive wife, an inconstant mother, a solipsistic writer.New York Times, 26 Jan. 2021 His main failing has been inconstant rhetorical leadership. The Editorial Board, WSJ, 10 Sep. 2020 And the prospect of hacking by foreign adversaries—or by any malign actor—will always be present in a system as decentralized and inconstant as the one that grew out of that single line in the Constitution. Sue Halpern, The New Yorker, 7 July 2020 Swear not by the moon, the inconstant moon, that monthly changes in her circled orb, lest that thy love prove likewise variable. Shannon Stirone, Wired, 11 Apr. 2020 But more interesting than Medvedev’s inconstant persona were the shades and shadows of his game. Louisa Thomas, The New Yorker, 6 Sep. 2019 Seven members of the Labour opposition resigned from the party in protest over leader Jeremy Corbyn’s inconstant dealing on Brexit and tolerance for anti-Semitism. The Editorial Board, WSJ, 18 Feb. 2019 See More
Word History
Etymology
Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin inconstant-, inconstans, from in- + constant-, constans constant