SYNONYMS AND RELATED EXPRESSIONS
mercurial
adjective
Changing mood or behavior quickly and unpredictably.
Local English device voice, when available. This is not a recorded dictionary pronunciation.
Quickly changeable
Closest synonyms
Related words and expressions
These extend or explain the idea and may require a different sentence structure.
Usage distinction
Return to topMercurial often suggests quick changes of mood; volatile can additionally suggest an explosive temper.
CHECK THE MEANING IN CONTEXT
See mercurial in use
The mercurial critic praised the draft one day and dismissed it the next.
The director of a student comedy could be mercurial, praising a scene enthusiastically and then becoming impatient with it a few minutes later.
Compare an alternative with the original word in each passage. Shared meanings do not make every pair interchangeable.
Synonym reference scope and sources
The groups distinguish the senses selected for this study entry. Closest synonyms and broader related expressions have separate labels. The listed sources support lexical selection; not every phrase is a direct quotation from a source.
How the synonym reference was prepared / WordNet 3.0 license