- tergiversation
- n. to change repeatedly one’s attitude or opinions with respect to a cause, subject, etc.; equivocate
Tergiversation has had many meanings, ranging from outright apostasy (abandonment of a faith, party or cause) to mere vacillation (hemming and hawing, basically). It’s a 17th-century addition to the language from the Latin tergiversārī, which literally means to turn one’s back (tergum (back) + versāre (to turn)).
I just think it’s a cool word, and obviously one that’s useful in more than one context. A note: the g is a soft one, meaning the word is pronounced tər-jiv-ər-say-shun.