shilly-shally 1 of 3

verb

Definition of shilly-shallynext
1
as in to hesitate
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

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to delay
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

shilly-shally

2 of 3

noun

as in hesitation
a state or an instance of temporary inaction because of uncertainty about the right course of action the construction project was once again delayed by the bureaucratic shilly-shally of regulatory agencies

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

shilly-shally

3 of 3

adjective

as in shilly-shallying

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for shilly-shally
  1. hesitate
  2. delay
  3. hesitation
  4. ambivalent
  5. falter
  6. linger
  7. hesitancy
  8. random
Verb
  • Lee hesitated when New Orleans Ballet Theatre commissioned the piece in 2016 as a full-company show-closer, giving her a short rehearsal period.
    — Guillermo Perez, Miami Herald, 10 Nov. 2026
  • Students who were comfortable explaining concepts suddenly hesitated.
    — Washington Post, Washington Post, 8 Nov. 2026
Definition of hesitate
Verb
  • The resort delayed its opening by a few days to allow for more snowmaking, and a few intermediate runs will be open beginning tomorrow.
    — Christa Swanson, CBS News, 8 Nov. 2026
  • Chicago Board of Elections spokesperson Julie Metea said final results are delayed because of a surge of 34,000 same-day voter registrations Tuesday.
    — Kate Armanini, Chicago Tribune, 7 Nov. 2026
Definition of delay
Noun
  • Caplin News / Florida International University Part of his hesitation came from questioning whether his vote could influence an election, particularly in presidential races decided through the Electoral College.
    — Sabrina Lozano, CBS News, 2 Nov. 2026
  • In the fourth quarter against Knicks, Wilson ran up the court in transition, collected a pass at the top of the key and fired off another 3 with the same signature lack of hesitation.
    — Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 30 Oct. 2026
Definition of hesitation
Adjective
  • But while trust in the Democrats on specific issues has increased, AAPI adults are ambivalent about the party as a whole.
    — Terry Tang, Los Angeles Times, 19 Oct. 2026
  • When film and television try to capture the messy morality of these would-be titans, the results are predictably ambivalent.
    — Brady Brickner-Wood, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026
Definition of ambivalent
Verb
  • Anir has remained glued to the door, his left hand gripping the handle as if clinging to something solid might keep him from faltering.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 5 Nov. 2026
  • When that reboot faltered, climaxing in a nightmarish season-14 finale, RHONY got another, softer reboot in the form of all but three cast members being fired.
    — Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 4 Nov. 2026
Definition of falter
Verb
  • The result is a thick haze that can linger over the capital and surrounding areas for days.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 8 Nov. 2026
  • The results raised long-standing concerns over the quality of work and whether the lingering contamination could present risks to the residents.
    — Tony Briscoe, Los Angeles Times, 6 Nov. 2026
Definition of linger
Noun
  • Vaccine hesitancy that rose across populations during the pandemic still lingers.
    — Peter Smith, Los Angeles Times, 4 Nov. 2026
  • Everyone Rhys loved could’ve died because of his hesitancy to trust Nesta, but now, Rhys sees the benefit in keeping Nesta as powerful as possible.
    — Maggie Fremont, Vulture, 4 Nov. 2026
Definition of hesitancy
Adjective
  • And that’s a random sample of years and all 32 teams involved.
    — Peter Sblendorio, New York Daily News, 3 Nov. 2026
  • Following the course of this ship right now is definitely random, but interesting.
    — Brian Sullivan, CNBC, 3 Nov. 2026
Definition of random
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

shilly-shallies
shilly-shally
shilly-shallying
See all Nearby Words

Podcast

Theme music by Joshua Stamper ©2006 New Jerusalem Music/ASCAP

Cite this Entry

“Shilly-shally.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shilly-shally. Accessed 12 Nov. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of gauntlet

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

31 Useful Rhetorical Devices

More Commonly Misspelled Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Longest Long Words List

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
woman sitting on floor holding book in front of her face on pink background
Famous Novels, Last Lines Quiz Needless to say, spoiler alert.
See All