fickle

F4I1C3K5L1E1
/ˈfɪk.əl/

adjective

Quick to change one’s opinion or allegiance; insincere; not loyal or reliable.

“fickle breeze”

Similar
flightycapriciousmercurialerraticvertiginousrovingvolatileinconstant
OriginMiddle English fikil ← Old English ficol →
Less commonScrabble 15
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Word of the Day · Feb 26, 2025

Meanings

fickle1

adjectivefickle (comparative fickler or more fickle, superlative ficklest or most fickle)

comparative fickler · comparative more fickle · superlative ficklest · superlative most fickle

  1. Quick to change one’s opinion or allegiance; insincere; not loyal or reliable.

    As night has such a local ring / And love and rock are fickle things

    2010, James Murphy, “Home”, in This Is Happening, performed by LCD Soundsystem
    2 more examples

    O Fortune, Fortune, all men call thee fickle, / If thou art fickle, what doſt thou with him / That is renown'd for faith? be fickle Fortune: / For then I hope thou wilt not keepe him long, / But ſend him backe.

    c. 1591–1595 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Romeo and Ivliet”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene v], page 69

    Still onward winds the dreary way; ⁠I with it; for I long to prove ⁠No lapse of moons can canker Love, Whatever fickle tongues may say.

    1850, [Alfred, Lord Tennyson], “Canto XXVI”, in In Memoriam, London: Edward Moxon, […], →OCLC, page 43

    Synonyms: flighty, capricious, mercurial

  2. figurativelyChangeable.

    fickle breeze

    2 more examples

    fickle stock market

    2014, Paul Salopek, Blessed. Cursed. Claimed., National Geographic (December 2014)https://web.archive.org/web/20150212214621/http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2014/12/pilgrim-roads/salopek-text To the south, the vast geometrical deserts of Arabian nomads, a redoubt of feral movement, of fickle winds, of open space, of saddle leather—home to the wild Bedouin tribes.

    Synonyms: erratic, vertiginous, roving

fickle2

verbfickle (third-person singular simple present fickles, present participle fickling, simple past and past participle fickled)

present singular third person fickles · participle present fickling · participle past fickled · past fickled

  1. transitiveTo deceive, flatter.
  2. UKdialectaltransitiveTo puzzle, perplex, nonplus.

Fickle3

proper nounFickle (plural Fickles)

plural Fickles

  1. A surname.

Synonyms & antonyms

adjectiveQuick to change one’s opinion or allegiance; insincere; not loyal or reliable.

Similar
flightycapriciousmercurial

adjectiveChangeable.

Similar
erraticvertiginousroving

More synonyms by meaning

adjectivemarked by erratic changeableness in affections or attachments

Similar
volatileinconstant

adjectiveliable to sudden unpredictable change

Similar
erraticmercurialquicksilverchangeablechangeful
Also see
capriciouschangeablechangefulchangelingdynamicerraticincalculableinconstantlight-headedmercurialmobilemoodyquicksilverragingshiftablevariablevolatile

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

fickle · adjective

  1. Old Englishficol“fickle, cunning, tricky, deceitful”
  2. Middle Englishfikil
  3. Englishfickle

From Middle English fikil, fikel, from Old English ficol (“fickle, cunning, tricky, deceitful”), equivalent to fike + -le. More at fike.

More words from Middle English, Old English

Full word history & related roots →

fickle · verb

  1. Middle Englishfikelen
  2. Englishfickle

From Middle English fikelen, from fikel (“fickle”); see above. Cognate with Low German fikkelen (“to deceive, flatter”), German ficklen, ficheln (“to deceive, flatter”).

More words from Middle English

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Bengali খামখেয়ালী, অস্থির
  • খামখেয়ালী (khamkheẏali)quick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • অস্থির (osthir)changeable
Bulgarian непостоя́нен, проме́нлив
  • непостоя́нен (nepostojánen)quick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • проме́нлив (proménliv)quick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • отмятащ се (otmjatašt se)quick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
Catalan inconstant
  • inconstantquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
Chinese Mandarin 多變 /多变, 薄情
  • 多變 /多变 (duōbiàn)quick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • 薄情 (bóqíng)quick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
Czech nestálý, přelétavý
  • nestálýquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • přelétavýquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • vrtkavýquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • nestálýchangeable
Danish lunefuld, vankelmodig
  • lunefuldquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • vankelmodigquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • vægelsindetquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
Dutch wispelturig, onbetrouwbaar
  • wispelturigquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • onbetrouwbaarquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • onbestendigquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • grilligquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • onberekenbaarquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • veranderlijkchangeable
Esperanto nefidinda
  • nefidindaquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
Finnish ailahteleva, huikenteleva
  • ailahtelevaquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • huikentelevaquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • häilyväquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • vaihtelevaquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • vaihtelevachangeable
French inconstant, volage
  • inconstantquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • volagequick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • lunatiquequick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • indécisquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • capricieuxquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • changeantchangeable
German unbeständig, wankelmütig
  • unbeständigquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • wankelmütigquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • wechselhaftquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • flatterhaftquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • launischquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • unstetquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • wechselhaftchangeable
  • unbeständigchangeable
  • unstetchangeable
Greek άστατος, ευμετάβλητος
  • άστατος (ástatos)quick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • ευμετάβλητος (evmetávlitos)quick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
Icelandic hverflyndur, óstöðugur
  • hverflyndurquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • óstöðugurquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
Italian volubile, incostante
  • volubilequick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • incostantequick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • mutevolequick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • capricciosoquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
Japanese 気が多い, 気まぐれな
  • 気が多い (ki ga ōi)quick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • 気まぐれな (kimagure na)quick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
Korean 변덕(變德)스럽다
  • 변덕(變德)스럽다 (byeondeokseureopda)quick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
Latin inconstans, instabilis
  • inconstansquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • instabilisquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • inconstanschangeable
Māori taurangi
  • taurangichangeable
Norwegian Bokmål vaklende, skiftende
  • vaklendequick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • skiftendequick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • ubestemmeligquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • vankelmodigquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • skiftendechangeable
  • lunefullchangeable
Persian دمدمی مزاج, حزبِ باد
  • دمدمی مزاج (damdami-mezâj)quick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • حزبِ باد (hezbe-bâd)quick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
Portuguese volúvel, caprichoso
  • volúvelquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • caprichosoquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • volátilquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
Romanian capricios, schimbător
  • capriciosquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • schimbătorquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • inconstantquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • schimbătorchangeable
Russian непостоя́нный, ве́треный
  • непостоя́нный (nepostojánnyj)quick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • ве́треный (vétrenyj)quick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • переме́нчивый (pereménčivyj)quick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • переме́нчивый (pereménčivyj)changeable
Scottish Gaelic leam-leat
  • leam-leatquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
Spanish veleidoso, voluble
  • veleidosoquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • volublequick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
Swedish ombytlig, nyckfull
  • ombytligquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • nyckfullquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
Tagalog balimbing
  • balimbingquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
Turkish caygın, dönek
  • caygınquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • dönekquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • kahpequick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • kaypakquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • hercaiquick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
Ukrainian непості́йний, неста́лий
  • непості́йний (nepostíjnyj)quick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • неста́лий (nestályj)quick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • мінли́вий (minlývyj)quick to change one’s opinion or allegiance
  • змінли́вий (zminlývyj)quick to change one’s opinion or allegiance

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with fickle

ethicalnickelideologicalpickleticklesickletricklecuticleBicklemickleicklechiclesticklebricklebricolefricklelikklepiculricklestrickle
All rhymes →

Anagrams

Fickel
Cite this entry
APA

fickle. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/fickle

MLA

“fickle.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/fickle. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “fickle,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/fickle.

Source: fickle on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.