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

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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
  • Early in the bout, Nick Jackson suffered a head injury, which Moxley urged Ospreay to exploit, but Ospreay hesitated.
    — Alfred Konuwa, Forbes.com, 26 July 2026
  • When asked if Airbnbs are legal at The Club, Alvarez hesitated.
    — Linda Robertson, Miami Herald, 16 July 2026
Definition of hesitated
Verb
  • Eckert was interviewed again earlier this month after the process was initially delayed, with Southampton’s head coach back in Germany and recently becoming a father.
    — Jacob Tanswell, New York Times, 22 July 2026
  • Gen Alphas seem to know almost immediately when something is fake, overproduced, delayed or culturally disconnected, which is why the strongest content right now often feels chaotic.
    — Kelly Samuel, Forbes.com, 21 July 2026
Definition of delayed
Verb
  • 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
  • Even as broader tech names and momentum plays have faltered, Apple has hit new all-time highs.
    — Michael Khouw, CNBC, 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
  • The public information request process dragged on for several months.
    — Kelsy Mittauer, CBS News, 1 Aug. 2026
  • According to Lupo, Boise’s above-average traffic congestion, coupled with a lack of economic diversity, dragged Boise’s score down in this category.
    — Hali Smith July 30, Idaho Statesman, 30 July 2026
Definition of dragged
Verb
  • Figures depicting the Pink Panther, Spider Man and the Minions have perched or crawled atop the Dome.
    — Mandalit del Barco, NPR, 31 July 2026
  • One of Thursday’s stations included the ‘Confidence Course,’ where campers crawled through tight spaces and wooden obstacles in their heavy gear.
    — Julianna Mejia July 31, Kansas City Star, 31 July 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.

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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 5 Aug. 2026.

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