instability
UK /ɪnstəˈbɪlɪti/ · US /ˌɪnstəˈbɪləti/ noun
Forms instabilities
- noun (uncountable) The quality of being unstable.
- noun (physics, countable) A state that is not in equilibrium, or in which a small change has a large irreversible effect.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Etymology
From Middle French instabilité, from Latin instabilitas.
Morphologically in- + stability.
Webster’s 1913
- noun The quality or condition of being unstable; want of stability, firmness, or steadiness; liability to give way or to fail; insecurity; precariousness; as, the instability of a building.
- noun Lack of determination of fixedness; inconstancy; fickleness; mutability; changeableness; as, instability of character, temper, custom, etc. Addison.
Etymology [L. instabilitas: cf. F. instabilité.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “instability”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details