dawdle
verb
intransitive verb
Jane Austen Connie Portertransitive verb
Synonyms
- crawl
- creep
- dally
- delay
- diddle
- dillydally
- drag
- lag
- linger
- loiter
- lollygag
- lallygag
- mope
- poke
- shilly-shally
- tarry
Example Sentences
Los Angeles Times, 4 June 2022 Clearly, this isn’t the time to dawdle or slack off. Michael Dirda, Washington Post, 25 May 2022 Don’t dawdle, though, because places are expected to book up fast. Susan Dunne, courant.com, 28 Mar. 2022 The team couldn’t dawdle because the dolphins might not stay long. Jill Langlois, Smithsonian Magazine, 16 Mar. 2022 We are rushed through the establishment of this world, only to dawdle as time goes by. Daniel D'addario, Variety, 23 Dec. 2021 Building for the future was too precious to dawdle. Evan Grant, Dallas News, 9 Aug. 2021 Pick a base and branch out or mix and match, but don’t dawdle. David Swanson, Los Angeles Times, 7 June 2021 Pick a base and branch out or mix and match, but don’t dawdle. David Swanson, Los Angeles Times, 7 June 2021 See More Word History
origin unknown
circa 1656, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1
Kids Definition
dawdle
verb
Louis Sachar, Holesdawdle
verb
Synonyms & Similar Words
- delay
- linger
- crawl
- drag
- poke
- lollygag
- stroll
- loiter
- creep
- dillydally
- mope
- lag
- tarry
- shuffle
- diddle
- play
- stall
- dally
- mark time
- lallygag
- fall behind
- hang fire
- shilly-shally
- idle
- drop behind
- saunter
- lounge
- stagger
- amble
- drag one's heels
- take one's time
- trifle
- drag one's feet
- procrastinate
- fool around
- temporize
- decelerate
- plod
- loaf
- mess around
- loll
- inch
- ease
- fiddle (around)
- lumber
- putter (around)
- potter (around)
- monkey (around)
- hang (around or out)
- filibuster
- slow (down or up)
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- hurry
- rush
- scurry
- course
- hasten
- race
- run
- scoot
- fly
- speed
- career
- whizz
- tear
- whiz
- whirl
- rip
- rocket
- dash
- whisk
- scramble
- breeze
- hurtle
- hotfoot (it)
- hustle
- scud
- zip
- bolt
- dart
- run
- hump
- barrel
- gallop
- trot
- stampede
- jog
- sprint
- bowl
- accelerate
- quicken
- speed (up)
- overtake
- outrun
- outstrip
- catch up
- outpace
- fast-forward
Synonyms & Similar Words
- lazy
- idle
- stroll
- dillydally
- laze
- relax
- rest
- chill
- bum
- lounge
- play
- dally
- linger
- kill time
- muck
- mess
- loll
- poke
- kick back
- loaf
- loiter
- hang about
- saunter
- piddle
- amble
- footle
- drone
- fool
- veg out
- goof (off)
- mosey
- twiddle one's thumbs
- trifle
- kick around
- hang (around or out)
- tarry
- monkey
- lag
- doze
- hack (around)
- hibernate
- estivate
- malinger
- truant
- goldbrick
- aestivate
- swan
- fiddle (around)
- putter (around)
- furlough
- potter (around)
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- work
- plod
- toil
- slave
- grind
- hustle
- labor
- sweat
- plow
- hump
- peg
- grub
- plug
- apply
- drudge
- buckle (down)
- exert
- travail
- moil
- put out
Synonym Chooser
Some common synonyms of dawdle are dally, delay, lag, loiter, and procrastinate. While all these words mean "to move or act slowly so as to fall behind," loiter and dawdle imply delay while in progress, especially in walking, but dawdle more clearly suggests an aimless wasting of time.
The words dally and dawdle can be used in similar contexts, but dally suggests delay through trifling or vacillation when promptness is necessary.
The meanings of delay and dawdle largely overlap; however, delay usually implies a putting off of something (such as a beginning or departure).
While in some cases nearly identical to dawdle, lag implies failure to maintain a speed set by others.
The synonyms procrastinate and dawdle are sometimes interchangeable, but procrastinate implies blameworthy delay especially through laziness or apathy.