dilly-dally

/ ˌdɪlɪˈdælɪ /

verb

1. informal,  (intr) to loiter or vacillate

Word History and Origins

Origin of dilly-dally¹

C17: by reduplication from _dally

Example Sentences

“Musn’t dilly-dally, miss. Remember, ‘A trip worth taking is a trip worth beginning,’” which made Penelope startle again, for she was quite certain that Agatha Swanburne had once said the very same thing.

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On weekends, I tend not to dilly-dally in the kitchen.

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“The housing situation is so desperate we don’t want any dilly-dallying,” Myers said.

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On August 28th, Donald Trump had had enough of his House Republicans dilly-dallying around.

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I think there must be people at Apple who want this, too, so I’m now respectfully requesting that the company stop dilly-dallying and make it happen.

Read more on The Verge