VARIABLE

Definitions

1. 1. Having the capacity of varying or changing; capable of alternation in any manner; changeable; as, variable winds or seasons; a variable quantity.
2. 2. Liable to vary; too susceptible of change; mutable; fickle; unsteady; inconstant; as, the affections of men are variable; passions are variable. Lest that thy love prove likewise variable. Shak. His heart, I know, how variable and vain! Milton. Variable exhaust (Steam Eng.), a blast pipe with an adjustable opening. -- Variable quantity (Math.), a variable. -- Variable stars (Astron.), fixed stars which vary in their brightness, usually in more or less uniform periods.