vi-cis-si-tude / vəˈsisəˌt(y)o͞od
noun the state or quality of being changeable; mutability The greatest vicissitude in things amongst men, is the vicissitude of sects and religions. Francis Bacon, 1561-1626 plural, alternation; succession Such are the vicissitudes of the world, through all its parts, that day and night, labor and rest, hurry and retirement, endear each other; such are the changes that keep the mind in action: we desire, we pursue, we obtain, we are satiated; we desire something else and begin a new pursuit. Samuel Johnson, 1709-1784 a fluctuation of condition or state Joy is a spiritual element that gives vicissitudes unity and significance. Helen Keller, 1880-1968