adjective
Etymology: Middle English, from present participle of halten to limp — more at halt
1.
a. : marked by a limp : lame , limping
recognized the cripple's halting walk
b. : slow and hesitant or reluctant : dragging , uncertain
walked home with heavy heart and halting steps
c. : lacking smoothness, facility, verve, or display of easy command in delivery : marked by abrupt halts and starts : faltering, awkward , ungraceful
his speaking voice … is thin and halting — Current Biography
too wise to let his halting utterance weaken the impression of his facile pen — John Buchan
his halting delivery of the play's longest speech — Henry Hewes
2.
a. : displaying weakness or imperfection (as in argument, development, or meter) : marked by lapses (as of grammar, interest, continuity) : proceeding raggedly or falteringly
a very halting argument
the poem's weak and halting rhymes
the halting development of this thin plot
b. : lacking in sureness (as of purpose, drive, or continuity) : proceeding by fits and starts : fumbling , indecisive , vacillating, ineffective
development of the military intelligence service … was slow and halting — G.F.Ashworth
the season got off to a halting start
made halting advance toward solving their difficulties — C.L.Jones
• halt·ing·ly adverb