fluctuation

Meaning

Noun

• A motion like that of waves; a moving in this and that direction.
• A wavering; unsteadiness.
• In medicine, a wave-like motion or undulation of a fluid in a natural or abnormal cavity (e.g. pus in an abscess), which is felt during palpation or percussion.

Origin

• Borrowed from Latin fluctuatiōnem, accusative singular of fluctuatiō, from fluctuō, from fluctus.
• Morphologically fluctuate + -ion