dawdle
Americanverb (used without object)
-
to waste time; idle; trifle; loiter.
Stop dawdling and help me with these packages!
-
to move slowly, languidly, or dilatorily; saunter.
verb (used with object)
verb
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(intr) to be slow or lag behind
-
to waste (time); trifle
Synonym Usage
See loiter.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
dawdlesimple
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dawdlessimple
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have dawdledperfect
-
has dawdledperfect
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are dawdlingprogressive
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am dawdlingprogressive
-
is dawdlingprogressive
-
have been dawdlingperfect progressive
-
has been dawdlingperfect progressive
Past
-
dawdledsimple
-
had dawdledperfect
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was dawdlingprogressive
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were dawdlingprogressive
-
had been dawdlingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of dawdle
First recorded in 1650–60; variant of daddle “to toddle”
Explanation
There are lots of words that mean to move slowly. The point of dawdle is that one is moving too slowly, is falling behind, or is not properly focused on making progress. One way to remember the meaning of dawdle is that it rhymes with "waddle," as in, "a duck waddles." Imagine what would happen if you waddled instead of walked. It would take a lot more time, and your companion might say, "Don't dawdle!" Dawdle implies not only taking extra time but actually wasting it. A leisurely walk in the woods is one thing, but if you have to get to the theater on time, don't dawdle along the way: you'll miss the curtain!
Vocabulary lists containing dawdle
100 SAT Words Beginning with "D"
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Touching Spirit Bear
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Languor Management: Synonyms for "Lazy"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Last year, the Dawdle or Dash drew 460 participants, with another 150 spectators lining the course and cheering on the walkers and runners.
From The Guardian • Dec. 23, 2017
Dawdle over coffee or antiques at the Flatiron building or photo art at Image City Photography Gallery.
From Reuters • Mar. 15, 2013
About eight in the morning Mr. Dawdle brought him a formal message from the knight of the Griffin, desiring he would appoint the lists, and give security of the field.
From The Adventures of Sir Launcelot Greaves by Smollett, T. (Tobias)
After having gazed alternately at him and Dawdle, "Who have we got here?" said he; "raw head and bloody bones?"
From The Adventures of Sir Launcelot Greaves by Smollett, T. (Tobias)
Dick Dawdle had land Worth two hundred a year, Yet from debt and from dunning He never was free, His intellect was not Surprisingly clear, But he never felt satisfied How it could be.
From Cole's Funny Picture Book No. 1 by Cole, E. W. (Edward William)
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.
