unsteadiness

adjective

1. not steady or firm; unstable; shaky: an unsteady hand.
2. fluctuating or wavering: an unsteady flame; unsteady prices.
3. irregular or uneven: an unsteady development.

verb (used with object), un·stead·ied, un·stead·y·ing.

4. to make unsteady.

adjective

1. not securely fixedan unsteady foothold
2. (of behaviour, etc) lacking constancy; erratic
3. without regularityan unsteady rhythm
4. (of a manner of walking, etc) precarious, staggering, as from intoxication

verb -steadies, -steadying or -steadied

5. (tr) to make unsteady

adj.1590s, from un- (1) “not” + steady (adj.). Cf. Old Frisian unstadich, German unstätig, Middle Dutch onstadich.