titubate means to stagger. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 87 out of 100.
titubate is pronounced /ˈtɪtjʊbeɪt/.
Why “titubate” is a great word
TITUBATE — [Verb] To move unsteadily with a wavering or reeling motion, or to speak with a faltering, hesitant voice. From Latin titubatus, past participle of titubare ("to stagger, totter, stammer"). First attested in English in the 1570s. Unlike "stagger," which implies a corporeal unsteadiness from drink or injury, or "stammer," which specifically denotes a speech disorder, titubate is a more literary and encompassing term for any fundamental loss of surety, whether in step or in sentence. It is the gait of a novice on an icy path, the hesitant voice of a confession half-made, the wobble of a compass needle near true north—a single word for the vertigo that precedes a fall, be it of the body or of the will.
Etymology
From Latin titubatus, past participle of titubare (“to stagger, totter”).
verb
- To stagger
- To rock or roll, like a curved body on a plane.
- To stutter, stammer.“They must let us alone here, we govern ourselves, we are by way of being totally autonomous. (The plethora of t’s there made his tongue titubate, but it was a brave show.)”