shilly-shallied

verb

past tense of shilly-shally
1
as in hesitated
to show uncertainty about the right course of action I didn't shilly-shally but instead raced to the hospital as soon as I heard the news

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in delayed
to move or act slowly with dinner guests due in two hours, there was no time to shilly-shally in front of the TV set

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for shilly-shallied
  1. hesitated
  2. delayed
  3. faltered
  4. lingered
  5. dragged
  6. crawled
  7. poked
Verb
  • When Kimmel hesitated when guessing Spaghetti & Meatball, Affleck and Ding called upon Ding’s trivia partner Stephen Morrison, who opted not to answer.
    — Charisma Madarang, Rolling Stone, 30 July 2026
  • Natalia, again fearing a trap, hesitated to disembark—until the dawn light revealed the smiling face of the rotund Diego Rivera, flanked by Mexican Trotskyists and government officials.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 28 July 2026
Definition of hesitated
Verb
  • The official, who spoke on behalf of the State Department on condition of anonymity, said Brazil has indicated the approval is likely to be delayed until after its election in October.
    — Abigail Williams, NBC news, 5 Aug. 2026
  • The article has been corrected to reflect that the university system’s timeline was expedited, not delayed.
    — Christopher Rim, Forbes.com, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of delayed
Verb
  • Billionaire Michael Saylor’s Strategy offloaded bitcoin last week in a move that raised over $100 million, as the cryptocurrency has faltered in the months since reaching an all-time high last October.
    — Danielle Chemtob, Forbes.com, 4 Aug. 2026
  • At the same time, an already untenable diplomatic effort to end the war has faltered once again as mistrust deepens between the longtime adversaries.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 29 July 2026
Definition of faltered
Verb
  • Last winter, in his first crack at free agency, Arraez lingered on the open market until late January before signing a one-year, $12 million contract with the San Francisco Giants.
    — Jayson Stark, New York Times, 1 Aug. 2026
  • Yet my party of work friends lingered, seeming to savor the change of venue.
    — Danny Heitman, Christian Science Monitor, 31 July 2026
Definition of lingered
Verb
  • There’s the Caesar salad, famously invented right here in Tijuana at Caesar’s Restaurante (now operated by the Plasencia family)—and still prepared tableside, whole leaves of romaine dragged through the decadent dressing to order.
    — Megan Spurrell, Condé Nast Traveler, 7 Aug. 2026
  • Growth in Asia was spurred by core markets like China, up 40% year-on-year and standing in contrast to the rest of the industry, where the market dragged on quarterly results.
    — Ella Graveney, Vogue, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of dragged
Verb
  • Primus crawled from the same California soup that gave birth to a host of funk-metal acts in the 1980s, following Fishbone, Faith No More, and, most infamously, the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
    — Sasha Geffen, Pitchfork, 2 Aug. 2026
  • Mysterio went for the Three Amigos, but Danhausen blocked the last attempt and crawled to the corner.
    — Blake Oestriecher, Forbes.com, 2 Aug. 2026
Definition of crawled
Verb
  • Offering a clever twist, the warm cake is poked with the handle of a wooden spoon, creating space for a vanilla-pineapple pudding to sink deep into the crumb.
    — Erin Merhar, Southern Living, 2 Aug. 2026
  • Let sit at room temperature until buns are puffed and expanded to edges of muffin cups (dough will spring back when poked but hold a slight indentation), 25–35 minutes.
    — Claire Saffitz, Bon Appetit Magazine, 1 Aug. 2026
Definition of poked
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.

Browse Nearby Words

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shilly-shallied
shilly-shallies
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Cite this Entry

“Shilly-shallied.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shilly-shallied. Accessed 10 Aug. 2026.

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