dallies

Definition of dalliesnext
present tense third-person singular of dally
1
2
3
as in flirts
to show a sexual attraction for someone just for fun she spent the summer dallying with a guy renting the neighboring beach house

Synonyms & Similar Words

4
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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for dallies
Verb
  • Matt Damon plays a Navy admiral in a submarine, who’s getting updates from his team on a terrifying creature in the murky waters.
    Rima Parikh, Vulture, 10 May 2026
  • The only loss in that streak was against The Academy of Central Florida — which plays outside the FHSAA.
    Buddy Collings, The Orlando Sentinel, 10 May 2026
Verb
  • The night footage is especially beautiful and memorable, and the careful handling of light shapes an aesthetic that lingers well beyond the final frame.
    Matthew Carey, Deadline, 7 May 2026
  • Spiking energy costs as the war in the Middle East lingers.
    Matt Egan, CNN Money, 7 May 2026
Verb
  • From time to time the thermometer flirts with 70.
    Moira McCarthy, Boston Herald, 7 May 2026
  • Surrounded by honeymooners, June tries (and flirts) to reclaim her joie de vivre, while Lela is deep in the dark.
    Anthony D'Alessandro, Deadline, 6 May 2026
Verb
  • The performance itself grows increasingly grating as the runtime drags on, particularly when Johnny’s scene partners overpower him by connecting deeper and doing less.
    Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 6 May 2026
  • The same logic should apply to the papering process itself, the document drafting and redlining that drags on long after the business points are ostensibly settled.
    George Heller, HollywoodReporter, 6 May 2026
Verb
  • But while the new movie dawdles on its way to Toxie’s origins, then rushes toward a finale with a lurching rhythm that verges on calculated ineptitude, its spirit never feels inauthentic.
    Alison Willmore, Vulture, 29 Aug. 2025
Verb
  • As climate change delays the first winter frosts across much of North America, summer ragweed also keeps flowering longer, extending the latter part of pollen season into the fall, said David Wees, a faculty lecturer in horticulture at McGill University in Montreal.
    Keerti Gopal, ArsTechnica, 8 May 2026
  • Copy-on-write is an optimization technique where a system delays making a separate copy of data until it is actually changed.
    Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 8 May 2026
Verb
  • As your car idles, warm air blown from the top of your dashboard will melt the ice on the outside of the windshield.
    Meghan Overdeep, Southern Living, 27 Dec. 2025
  • Security camera footage shows a black vehicle park in front of Café Bernardo, a restaurant, and idles for about two minutes.
    Madisen Keavy, CBS News, 17 Dec. 2025
Verb
  • Think about how often your toddler crawls near the dog bed or your kids toss pet toys around the living room.
    Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 9 Apr. 2026
  • In the book, Grace drags Rocky back to his part of the ship, exposing himself to the Eridian environment; in the film, Rocky crawls back while Grace is unconscious.
    Matthew Razak, Space.com, 23 Mar. 2026
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Cite this Entry

“Dallies.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dallies. Accessed 14 May. 2026.

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