# nutate

> English word · Verb

## Definitions
1. To rock or sway involuntarily.
2. To wobble; to make a circular rocking motion.

## Etymology
First attested in 1880; back-formation from nutation (1610s) on the basis of -ate (verb-forming suffix), from Latin nūtātiō (“a nodding”), from nūtō (“to nod”), from Proto-Indo-European *neu-. Compare mutate.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/nutate