dally

verb

dal·ly ˈda-lē How to pronounce dally (audio)

dallied; dallying

intransitive verb

: to act playfully

especially : to play amorously

: to deal lightly : toy

accused him of dallying with a serious problem

: to waste time

: linger, dawdle

dallier noun

Did you know?

The Evolution of Dally

English speakers have been playing with dally since the 14th century. They first started using the word with the meaning "to chat," which was also the meaning of the Anglo-French word from which it was derived, but that meaning fell into disuse. Next, dalliers were amusing themselves by acting playfully with each other especially in amorous and flirtatious ways. Apparently, some dalliers were also a bit derisive, leading dally to mean "to deal with lightly or in a way that is not serious." It didn't take long for the fuddy-duddies to criticize all this play as a waste of time. By the mid-16th century, dally was weighted down with its "to waste time" and "to dawdle" senses.

Example Sentences

The two of us dallied over our coffee that morning.

Recent Examples on the Web The deadline for submitting ideas for the next set has also been extended until Sept. 1, so don’t dilly-dally with yours.

Adam Lashinsky, Fortune, 10 Apr. 2020 Before taking control of the Gaullist party in 1976, Mr. Chirac dallied with the Communist and Socialist Parties.

New York Times, 26 Sep. 2019 No unplugged shows for her, no Bon Iver covers or dallying with avant-garde producers: David Guetta and Sia will do, thank you very much.

New York Times, 29 Feb. 2020 WikiLeaks has also been accused of serving as a conduit for Russian misinformation, and Assange has alienated some supporters by dallying with populist politicians including Brexit-promoter Nigel Farage.

NBC News, 24 Feb. 2020 In an attempt to egg him on through jealousy, Ness herself has been dallying, with unfortunate consequences.

Clair Wills, The New York Review of Books, 7 Jan. 2020 Harry Kane scored the crucial goal five minutes from the end after Jack Grealish was caught dallying on the ball, and the Villa captain was punished by the clinical striker.

SI.com, 10 Aug. 2019 Enough dilly dallying, when are the Broncos going to put in Drew Lock as their starting quarterback?

Ryan O’halloran, The Denver Post, 26 Nov. 2019 Books are meant to be long, dallying detours into other worlds.

BostonGlobe.com, 12 Sep. 2019 See More

单词	dallier
释义	dally verb dal·ly ˈda-lē dallied; dallying intransitive verb 1 a : to act playfully especially : to play amorously b : to deal lightly : toy accused him of dallying with a serious problem 2 a : to waste time b : linger, dawdle dallier noun Did you know? The Evolution of Dally English speakers have been playing with dally since the 14th century. They first started using the word with the meaning "to chat," which was also the meaning of the Anglo-French word from which it was derived, but that meaning fell into disuse. Next, dalliers were amusing themselves by acting playfully with each other especially in amorous and flirtatious ways. Apparently, some dalliers were also a bit derisive, leading dally to mean "to deal with lightly or in a way that is not serious." It didn't take long for the fuddy-duddies to criticize all this play as a waste of time. By the mid-16th century, dally was weighted down with its "to waste time" and "to dawdle" senses. Synonyms disport frolic play recreate rollick skylark sport toy See all Synonyms & Antonyms Example Sentences The two of us dallied over our coffee that morning. Recent Examples on the Web The deadline for submitting ideas for the next set has also been extended until Sept. 1, so don’t dilly-dally with yours. Adam Lashinsky, Fortune, 10 Apr. 2020 Before taking control of the Gaullist party in 1976, Mr. Chirac dallied with the Communist and Socialist Parties. New York Times, 26 Sep. 2019 No unplugged shows for her, no Bon Iver covers or dallying with avant-garde producers: David Guetta and Sia will do, thank you very much. New York Times, 29 Feb. 2020 WikiLeaks has also been accused of serving as a conduit for Russian misinformation, and Assange has alienated some supporters by dallying with populist politicians including Brexit-promoter Nigel Farage. NBC News, 24 Feb. 2020 In an attempt to egg him on through jealousy, Ness herself has been dallying, with unfortunate consequences. Clair Wills, The New York Review of Books, 7 Jan. 2020 Harry Kane scored the crucial goal five minutes from the end after Jack Grealish was caught dallying on the ball, and the Villa captain was punished by the clinical striker. SI.com, 10 Aug. 2019 Enough dilly dallying, when are the Broncos going to put in Drew Lock as their starting quarterback? Ryan O’halloran, The Denver Post, 26 Nov. 2019 Books are meant to be long, dallying detours into other worlds. BostonGlobe.com, 12 Sep. 2019 See More Word History Etymology Middle English dalyen, from Anglo-French dalier First Known Use 15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a Phrases Containing dally dally with dally with Kids Definition dally verb dal·ly ˈda-lē dallied; dallying 1 : to act playfully Boys and girls dallied at the dance. 2 : to waste time I dallied at my desk and didn't finish my homework. 3 : linger sense 1, dawdle Don't dally on your way home. dallier noun as in snail someone who moves slowly or more slowly than others the dalliers began to hurry when they realized a violent storm was brewing Synonyms & Similar Words Relevance snail lingerer crawler slowpoke laggard straggler loiterer delayer slug plodder dawdler dragger latecomer lagger idler slouch loafer sluggard lazybones procrastinator lounger Antonyms & Near Antonyms speedster hustler scrambler hurrier speeder rusher go-getter See More
随便看	the life of the party the life to come the light of someone's life the like of the likes of the limelight the limit the literati the Little Dipper the little guy the little man the little matter the little woman the little/small matter the livelong day the living the long and (the) short of it the long and short the long and short of it the long and the short the long and the short of it the long arm of the law the long jump the long run the long term

dally

verb

Did you know?

Synonyms

Example Sentences

Word History

Phrases Containing dally

Kids Definition

verb

noun