fickle

adjective

ˈfi-kəl How to pronounce fickle (audio)
Definition of ficklenext
1
as in volatile
likely to change frequently, suddenly, or unexpectedly a fickle friendship that was on and off over the years

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in traitorous
not true in one's allegiance to someone or something when the family's fortune disappeared, so did their fickle friends

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective fickle differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of fickle are capricious, inconstant, mercurial, and unstable. While all these words mean "lacking firmness or steadiness (as in purpose or devotion)," fickle suggests unreliability because of perverse changeability and incapacity for steadfastness.

performers discover how fickle fans can be

In what contexts can capricious take the place of fickle?

In some situations, the words capricious and fickle are roughly equivalent. However, capricious suggests motivation by sudden whim or fancy and stresses unpredictability.

an utterly capricious critic

When could inconstant be used to replace fickle?

The meanings of inconstant and fickle largely overlap; however, inconstant implies an incapacity for steadiness and an inherent tendency to change.

an inconstant friend

When is mercurial a more appropriate choice than fickle?

While the synonyms mercurial and fickle are close in meaning, mercurial implies a rapid changeability in mood.

made anxious by her boss's mercurial temperament

When might unstable be a better fit than fickle?

The synonyms unstable and fickle are sometimes interchangeable, but 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

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of fickle The hideously fickle Lydia slaps Janine across the face for being an ingrate. —Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 29 Apr. 2025 The financial markets will quickly become some unhappy combination of fickle and volatile. —Jay Adkisson, Forbes.com, 7 Apr. 2025 No corner of the economy is likely to remain untouched, and the already fickle art market is no exception. —Jessica Gelt, Los Angeles Times, 7 Apr. 2025 Against most experts’ expectations, the result suggested that dark energy—the mysterious force driving the universe’s accelerating expansion—was not an unwavering constant but rather a more fickle beast that was weakening over time. —Lyndie Chiou, Scientific American, 30 Apr. 2025 See All Example Sentences for fickle
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fickle
  1. volatile
  2. traitorous
  3. unpredictable
  4. unreliable
  5. treacherous
  6. false
  7. inconstant
Adjective
  • Other big miners, including archrivals BHP, Anglo American and Glencore, have steered clear of lithium, am important metal in batteries, but one which is also abundantly available puts suffers from extremely volatile pricing.
    — Tim Treadgold, Forbes.com, 23 May 2025
  • Unlike traditional crypto payment providers that handle numerous volatile currencies, Coinsub Technology strategically specializes in stablecoins.
    — William Jones, USA Today, 22 May 2025
Definition of volatile
Adjective
  • Michael Fassbender plays a British intelligence officer tasked with finding who leaked a top-secret software program and betrayed their country, and the list of five potentially traitorous suspects includes his own high-profile wife (Cate Blanchett).
    — Brian Truitt, USA Today, 10 May 2025
  • Smith made out their former collaborators to be ungrateful and traitorous, and the kids weren't given the space to question her command.
    — Zoey Lyttle, People.com, 18 Apr. 2025
Definition of traitorous
Adjective
  • Trump’s aggressive and unpredictable policies — including massive import taxes — have clouded the outlook for the economy as well as the job market and raised fears that the American economy is headed toward recession.
    — Matt Ott, Chicago Tribune, 27 May 2025
  • Smaller airlines are reportedly being hurt worst by unpredictable travel times.
    — Brian Niemietz, New York Daily News, 27 May 2025
Definition of unpredictable
Adjective
  • The cooling system in her second-story apartment in Albuquerque, New Mexico, had always been unreliable.
    — Ignacio Calderon, USA Today, 21 May 2025
  • This showed that changes in the truck's speed produced turbulence in the liquid helium, making measurements of its presence unreliable.
    — John Timmer, ArsTechnica, 19 May 2025
Definition of unreliable
Adjective
  • Hickey made three trips back and forth in the treacherous water to save the boaters one by one.
    — Nicholas Williams, New York Daily News, 25 May 2025
  • Mastering wet roads: Safety tips for heavy rainfall When heavy rain pours, the risk of flooding and treacherous roads rises.
    — Southern California Weather Report, Oc Register, 24 May 2025
Definition of treacherous
Adjective
  • The decision to deploy Dembele as a false nine for a 3-1 home win over Lyon in mid-December proved the spark for a stupendous run of goal-scoring form in which the France international racked up 27 goals in only 22 appearances.
    — Tom Williams, New York Times, 30 May 2025
  • The couple was convicted in 2022 of conspiring to defraud banks out of more than $30 million in loans by submitting false documents.
    — Eric Tucker, Chicago Tribune, 30 May 2025
Definition of false
Adjective
  • If the United States is an unreliable partner and a source of chaos these countries will turn elsewhere, building new security and trade alliances that don’t depend on the inconstant, waning superpower.
    — Lydia Polgreen, Mercury News, 27 May 2025
  • Much like a patient who fails to finish a course of antibiotics, inconstant policies may incur all the costs and none of the benefits.
    — David Carlin, Forbes, 24 Mar. 2025
Definition of inconstant

Browse Nearby Words

fibs
fickle
fickleness
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Cite this Entry

“Fickle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fickle. Accessed 6 Jun. 2025.

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