staggery


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Related to staggery: staggery gait

stag·ger

 (stăg′ər)
v. stag·gered, stag·ger·ing, stag·gers
v.intr.
To move or stand unsteadily, as if under a great weight; totter. See Synonyms at blunder.
v.tr.
1. To cause to totter, sway, or reel: The blow staggered him.
2. To astonish, shock, or overwhelm: a teacher staggered by a former student's accomplishments; a company staggered by increases in energy costs.
3. To place on or as if on alternating sides of a center line; set in a zigzag row or rows: theater seats that were staggered for clear viewing.
4. To arrange in alternating or overlapping time periods: staggered the nurses' shifts.
5. To arrange (the wings of a biplane) so that the leading edge of one wing is either ahead of or behind the leading edge of the other wing.
6. Sports To arrange (the start of a race) with the starting point in the outside lanes progressively closer to the finish line so as to neutralize the advantage of competing in the shorter inside lanes.
n.
1. A tottering, swaying, or reeling motion.
2. A staggered pattern, arrangement, or order.
3. staggers(used with a sing. verb) Any of various diseases in animals, especially horses, cattle, or other domestic animals, that are characterized by a lack of coordination in moving, a staggering gait, and frequent falling.

[Alteration of Middle English stakeren, from Old Norse stakra, frequentative of staka, to push.]

stag′ger·er n.
stag′ger·y adj.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

staggery

(ˈstæɡərɪ)
adj
(Veterinary Science) (of an animal) suffering from staggers
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
References in classic literature ?
'Why, if I felt less like a walking brandy-bottle I shouldn't be quite so staggery this mornin',' replied Sam.
"They lose weight to start with and then get staggery, the progression gets worse, they get uncoordinated and depressed, they don't know where their feet are and they become recumbent and die that way."