fickle

See also: Fickle

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈfɪk.əl/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɪkəl

Etymology 1

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

Adjective

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

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

     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.

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

     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.

   • 2010, James Murphy (lyrics and music), “Home”, in This Is Happening, performed by LCD Soundsystem:

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

2. (figurative) Changeable.
   • 2014, Paul Salopek, Blessed. Cursed. Claimed., National Geographic (December 2014)

     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.

   fickle breeze

   fickle stock market

Derived terms

• fickle finger of fate
• fickleness
• ficklesome
• fickly
• fucked by the fickle finger of fate

 

Translations

quick to change one’s opinion or allegiance

Armenian: հեղհեղուկ (hy) (heġheġuk) Belarusian: непастая́нны (njepastajánny), зме́нлівы (zmjénlivy) Bengali: খামখেয়ালী (khamkheẏali) Bulgarian: непостоя́нен (bg) (nepostojánen), проме́нлив (bg) (proménliv), отмятащ се (otmjatašt se) Catalan: inconstant (ca) Chinese: Mandarin: 多變／多变 (zh) (duōbiàn), 薄情 (zh) (bóqíng) (in love) Czech: nestálý, přelétavý, vrtkavý (cs) Danish: lunefuld, vankelmodig, vægelsindet Dutch: wispelturig (nl), onbetrouwbaar (nl), onbestendig (nl), grillig (nl), onberekenbaar (nl) Esperanto: nefidinda Finnish: ailahteleva (fi), huikenteleva (fi), häilyvä (fi), vaihteleva (fi) French: inconstant (fr), volage (fr), lunatique (fr), indécis (fr), capricieux (fr) Galician: antolladizo (gl), caprichoso (gl), volúbel German: unbeständig (de), wankelmütig (de), wechselhaft (de), flatterhaft (de), launisch (de), unstet (de) Greek: άστατος (el) (ástatos), ευμετάβλητος (el) (evmetávlitos) Icelandic: hverflyndur, óstöðugur Italian: volubile (it), incostante (it), mutevole (it), capriccioso (it) Japanese: 気が多い (きがおおい, ki ga ōi), 気まぐれな (ja) (きまぐれな, kimagure na) Korean: 변덕(變德)스럽다 (byeondeokseureopda) Latin: inconstans, instabilis Macedonian: непо́стојан (nepóstojan), про́менлив (prómenliv) Norwegian: Bokmål: vaklende, skiftende, ubestemmelig (no), vankelmodig Occitan: inconstant (oc), lunard, lunatenc, cambiadís (oc), lunatic, viradís (oc), capriciós (oc) Persian: دمدمی مزاج (damdami-mezâj) Portuguese: volúvel (pt), caprichoso (pt), volátil (pt) Romanian: capricios (ro), schimbător (ro), inconstant (ro) Russian: непостоя́нный (ru) (nepostojánnyj), ве́треный (ru) (vétrenyj), переме́нчивый (ru) (pereménčivyj) Scottish Gaelic: leam-leat Serbo-Croatian: Roman: prevrtljiv (sh), nepostojan (sh), prevrtljiv (sh), mušičav (sh), hirovit (sh) Spanish: inconstante (es), veleidoso (es), voluble (es), pendular (es) Swedish: ombytlig (sv), nyckfull (sv) Tagalog: balimbing Turkish: caygın (tr), dönek (tr), kahpe (tr), kaypak (tr) Ukrainian: непості́йний (nepostíjnyj), неста́лий (nestályj), мінли́вий (uk) (minlývyj), змінли́вий (zminlývyj)

changeable

Bengali: অস্থির (bn) (osthir) Czech: nestálý Dutch: veranderlijk (nl) Finnish: vaihteleva (fi) French: changeant (fr) German: wechselhaft (de), unbeständig (de), unstet (de) Latin: inconstans Macedonian: про́менлив (prómenliv), ме́нлив (ménliv) Maori: taurangi Norwegian: Bokmål: skiftende, lunefull Occitan: cambiadís (oc) Romanian: schimbător (ro) Russian: переме́нчивый (ru) (pereménčivyj)

Etymology 2

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

Verb

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

1. (transitive) To deceive, flatter.
2. (transitive, UK dialectal) To puzzle, perplex, nonplus.

Anagrams

• Fickel