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Synonyms

shilly-shally

American  
[shil-ee-shal-ee] / ˈʃɪl iˌʃæl i /

verb (used without object)

shilly-shallied, shilly-shallying

  1. to show indecision or hesitation; be irresolute; vacillate.

  2. to waste time; dawdle.

noun

plural

shilly-shallies

  1. irresolution; indecision; vacillation.

    It was sheer shilly-shally on his part.

adjective

  1. irresolute; undecided; vacillating.

adverb

  1. irresolutely.

Other Word Forms

Etymology

Origin of shilly-shally

First recorded in 1690–1700; originally repeated question, shall I? shall I?; later altered on the model of its synonym dilly-dally

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.