dawdle

verb daw·dle \ ˈdȯ-dᵊl \

|Updated on: 21 Jun 2018

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Examples: dawdle in a Sentence

Definition of dawdle

dawdled; dawdling play \ˈdȯ-dliŋ, -dᵊl-iŋ\

intransitive verb

1 : to spend time idly

… dawdled about in the vestibule …
—Jane Austen

2 : to move lackadaisically

"I don't want you dawdling while you making deliveries for Mrs. Ford."
—Connie Porter

transitive verb

: to spend fruitlessly or lackadaisically

dawdled the day away

—

dawdler

play \ˈdȯ-dlər, -dᵊl-ər\ noun

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Examples of dawdle in a Sentence

Hurry up! There's no time to dawdle.
Come home immediately after school, and don't dawdle.

Recent Examples of dawdle from the Web

After initially dawdling, the company pushed out its chief executive and fired or disciplined hundreds of managers.

— jack ewing, New York Times, "Diesel Scandal Deepens as German Authorities Target Audi Chief and Daimler," 11 June 2018
Then, when bad weather forced them to dawdle in Calais for two weeks while their Channel crossing was delayed, Anne and Henry took a Fornication Vacation and finally consummated their love.

— anne thériault, Longreads, "Queens of Infamy: Anne Boleyn," 25 May 2018
Still, this is no time to dawdle; here are some tips for you last-minute filers: How to file The IRS says that electronic filing is the best way to avoid common mistakes.

— NBC News, "Procrastinators rejoice: There's still time to file taxes," 15 Apr. 2018
City right back Kyle Walker dawdled on the ball as the rebound fell at his feet, allowing Firmino to prod the ball into Salah's path and Liverpool's player of the season hammered the ball into the net.

— matias grez, CNN, "Liverpool stun Manchester City to take commanding lead in Champions League tie," 4 Apr. 2018
Such a slow and uncertain response, following equally dawdling attempts to address the 2008 economic slump, has raised questions about the E.U.’s ability to cope with crisis, and even, its critics say, to function at all.

— alex perry, Newsweek, "Migrants and the New Mediterranean Mafia," 10 June 2015
Netanyahu dawdled until the last possible moment—Friday afternoon, less than an hour before the Sabbath.

— gregg carlstrom, Newsweek, "The Fall of Benjamin Netanyahu and the Future of Israel," 15 Mar. 2018
But Congress has dawdled on crossing the finish line.

— kristin rowe-finkbeiner, Time, "Why America Needs a Paid Family Leave Act for All," 26 Feb. 2018
The absence of any overriding vision tells in the novel’s dawdling middle sections.

— sam sacks, WSJ, "The Best New Fiction," 29 Sep. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'dawdle.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of dawdle

origin unknown

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: circa 1656

in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

See Words from the same year

dawdle Synonyms

Phrases

drag one's feet (also drag one's heels), drop behind, fall behind, hang fire, mark time, take one's time;

Synonym Discussion of dawdle

delay, procrastinate, lag, loiter, dawdle, dally mean to move or act slowly so as to fall behind. delay usually implies a putting off of something (such as a beginning or departure).