Can I depend on you?

Human beings can, broadly speaking, be divided into two groups. One group of people can be counted on when things go down to the wire, or when the chips are down and everyone needs to focus and rally to make a comeback. This list describes the other group. They may have a lot of other positive characteristics, but constancy and dependability are not among them. This list is about the wanderers, the noncommittal, those whose minds' change as quickly as the weather. Here are ten words to describe these people you might want to think twice before counting on.
10 words 1949 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. dubious
    fraught with uncertainty or doubt
    But this frolicsome tone seems a dubious tactic for “King Lear,” Shakespeare’s darkest and most corrosive tragedy.
    —New York Times Oct 1, 2014
  2. erratic
    liable to sudden unpredictable change
    Pittsburgh has been a maddening mixed bag during the first six weeks, flipping between exciting and erratic, often from possession to possession.
    —Washington Times Oct 14, 2014
  3. capricious
    determined by chance or impulse rather than by necessity
    That said, there is no science in predicting when capricious investors dump their rose-tinted eyewear and put on their "glass-half-empty" specs.
    —BBC Oct 16, 2014
  4. fickle
    liable to sudden unpredictable change
    But then weather gods and baseball gods alike changed their fickle minds about the fate of the happy throng below.
    —Washington Post Oct. 5, 2014
  5. inconsistent
    displaying a lack of regularity
    These records are often inconsistent and maddeningly incomplete, however—it takes a lot of analysis to synthesize them into a clear picture of the language.
    —Time Oct 28, 2014
  6. mercurial
    liable to sudden unpredictable change
    Unlike many legacy rockers, Dylan puts on mercurial live shows, reworking old songs and sometimes disregarding his classic songs.
    —Seattle Times Oct 15, 2014
  7. wayward
    resistant to guidance or discipline
    In recent years, wayward bison have been removed through a combination of special round-ups and hunting.
    —Reuters Sep 17, 2014
  8. haphazard
    dependent upon or characterized by chance
    But the conversation is still me, intimate and – like my cooking style – somewhat haphazard, as I am never scripted.
    —The Guardian Oct 19, 2014
  9. arbitrary
    based on or subject to individual discretion or preference
    There was nothing arbitrary about the crispness with which the orchestra wrapped up its thoughts, letting sound deliberately linger in the air.
    —Washington Post Oct 27, 2014
  10. wanton
    unprovoked or without motive or justification
    In interviews, current and former inmates described arbitrary and wanton abuse by other inmates and correction officers.
    —New York Times Mar 18, 2014
Created on Fri Oct 31 16:52:14 EDT 2014 (updated Mon Nov 03 11:51:12 EST 2014)

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