1
as in to delay
to move or act slowly
don't dillydally on the way to the store
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to lazy
to spend time doing nothing
restaurant employees who, during the slow periods, would rather be doing something instead of just dillydallying
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of dillydally
There was the tapping of the top of the bat to his toes, scribbling in the dirt, adjusting his gloves and swiping his shoulder, among other displays of dillydallying.
—
Anna Brand, CNN, 30 Mar. 2023
Bathroom breaks and other excuses for dillydallying give your heart rate a chance to return to normal.
—Elizabeth Narins, Cosmopolitan, 22 May 2015
Anna Brand, CNN, 30 Mar. 2023
Bathroom breaks and other excuses for dillydallying give your heart rate a chance to return to normal.
—Elizabeth Narins, Cosmopolitan, 22 May 2015
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dillydally
Verb
-
Consequently, the plane's takeoff was delayed for three hours after the investigation began.—
Peter D'Abrosca , Alexandra Koch,
FOXNews.com,
8 Feb. 2026
-
The funding freeze had threatened to eliminate about 1,000 jobs immediately and delay replacement of a 110-year-old tunnel vital to Northeast rail transportation.—
Anthony Izaguirre,
Los Angeles Times,
7 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Forecast models show those same signals developing again, suggesting Ohio’s winter may linger longer than usual despite Buckeye Chuck not seeing his shadow on Groundhog Day.—
Brandi D. Addison,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
3 Feb. 2026
-
Experts say a lingering cold air mass across the Midwest could keep temperatures below historical averages well into early spring.—
Brandi D. Addison,
IndyStar,
3 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Flight attendants turned into drill sergeants, barking at passengers who flouted mask rules or dawdled too long eating that snack with the mask off.—
Thomas Black,
Twin Cities,
21 Dec. 2025
-
My request to ownership is don’t dawdle.—
DP Opinion,
Denver Post,
19 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Demanding papers, dragging away dissenters.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
5 Feb. 2026
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Slave catchers could capture them, kidnap them and drag them back South.—
Jesse Wright,
Chicago Tribune,
5 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Then Jason and Thor shower together, each lathering the other’s back and bums up with fewer orgasms than an old Herbal Essences commercial.—
Brian Moylan,
Vulture,
4 Feb. 2026
-
Rittenhouse admits to initially being bummed out to not be the murderer, only to quickly come around to preferring this outcome.—
Derek Lawrence,
HollywoodReporter,
12 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The Jacksonville incident poked at the tension.—
Jerry Brewer,
New York Times,
3 Feb. 2026
-
The Stars pulled even when Nils Lundkvist poked a rebound past Hellebuyck on a shot from Duchene with five minutes left in the second period.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
3 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Staff members watched from the doorway while two white school security SUVs idled nearby.—
Jaweed Kaleem,
Los Angeles Times,
31 Jan. 2026
-
That means that, for 20 years, as the real ambulances would idle on set, the crew and actors would be inhaling the diesel fumes that being emitted from the loud, life-saving vehicles.—
Jackie Strause,
HollywoodReporter,
29 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Maybe the girl had crawled under a neighbor's trailer while playing hide-and-seek.—
Kristine Phillips,
IndyStar,
5 Feb. 2026
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Well, there was a great deal left in me, in an agony of embarrassment looking around for that hole on the floor to crawl into.—
Natalia Sánchez Loayza,
Scientific American,
5 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Dillydally.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dillydally. Accessed 8 Feb. 2026.
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