totter

== English == === Etymology === From Middle English totren, toteren, from earlier *tolteren (compare dialectal English tolter (“to struggle, flounder”); Scots tolter (“unstable, wonky”)), from Old English tealtrian (“to totter, vacillate”), from Proto-Germanic *taltrōną, a frequentative form of Proto-Germanic *taltōną (“to sway, dangle, hesitate”), from Proto-Indo-European *del-, *dul- (“to shake, hesitate”). Cognate with Dutch touteren (“to tremble”), Norwegian dialectal totra (“to quiver, shake”), North Frisian talt, tolt (“unstable, shaky”). Related to tilt. === Pronunciation === (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ˈtɒtə/ (General American) IPA(key): /ˈtɑtɚ/ Rhymes: -ɒtə(ɹ) === Verb === totter (third-person singular simple present totters, present participle tottering, simple past and past participle tottered) (intransitive) To walk, move or stand unsteadily or falteringly; threatening to fall. (figurative) To be on the brink of collapse. Synonym: topple (archaic) To collect junk or scrap. ==== Synonyms ==== (move unsteadily): reel, teeter, toddle, stagger, sway ==== Derived terms ==== ==== Translations ==== === Noun === totter (plural totters) An unsteady movement or gait. (archaic) A rag and bone man. ==== Derived terms ==== ==== Translations ==== == Middle High German == === Noun === totter m alternative form of toter ==== Declension ====