dawdle

verb

daw·dle | \ ˈdȯ-dᵊl

dawdled; dawdling\ ˈdȯ-dliŋ

, -dᵊl-iŋ \

Definition of dawdle

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

Other Words from dawdle Synonyms & Antonyms Choose the Right Synonym More Example Sentences Learn More about dawdle

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Choose the Right Synonym for 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). we cannot delay any longer procrastinate implies blameworthy delay especially through laziness or apathy. procrastinates about making decisions lag implies failure to maintain a speed set by others. lagging behind in technology loiter and dawdle imply delay while in progress, especially in walking, but dawdle more clearly suggests an aimless wasting of time. loitered at several store windows children dawdling on their way home from school dally suggests delay through trifling or vacillation when promptness is necessary. stop dallying and get to work

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 on the Web

Make a beeline for your car after the performance to get a jump start on the crowd, or plan to dawdle a bit. — Jim Harrington, The Mercury News, "Mountain Winery Guide: What you need to know about the venue," 3 July 2019 Ovid’s share price has dawdled below $2 for most of 2019. — Damian Garde, BostonGlobe.com, "Ovid begins late-stage trial for rare disease treatment, defying Wall Street’s expectations," 27 June 2019 Companies are dawdling in their adoption of the Federal Reserve’s preferred replacement for the interest-rate benchmark underpinning trillions of dollars in financial contracts. — Daniel Kruger And Telis Demos, WSJ, "Companies Slow to Adopt Libor Replacement," 20 May 2019 But in the early voting states, the hapless citizens have already dined, danced and dawdled with the Democratic candidates at length, and their impressions have begun to change. — Gerard Baker, WSJ, "Can Joe Biden Win in 2020 as the Candidate of the Old Guard?," 14 June 2019 Never one to dawdle on a headline, the Times has already announced that managing editor Dean Baquet will be her replacement. — Rachel Mosely, Town & Country, "The 1% Daily," 14 May 2014 Analysts warn that Unibail shouldn’t dawdle in its sales strategy. — Isobel Lee, WSJ, "Unibail Selling Properties After Big Westfield Deal," 2 July 2018 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

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.