falter
An unsteadiness.
To waver or be unsteady; to weaken or trail off.
To stammer; to utter with hesitation, or in a weak and trembling manner.
βItβs β itβs true?β faltered Professor McGonagall. βAfter all heβs done . . . all the people heβs killed . . . he couldnβt kill a little boy? Itβs just astounding . . . of all the things to stop him . . . but how in the name of heaven did Harry survive?β βWe can only guess,β said Dumbledore. βWe may never know.β
To fail in distinctness or regularity of exercise; said of the mind or of thought.
To stumble.
(figuratively) To lose faith or vigor; to doubt or abandon (a cause).
To hesitate in purpose or action.
To cleanse or sift, as barley.
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