Dillydallies

/ˌdɪliˈdælis/ verb

Definition

Third person singular present tense of dilly-dally; wastes time, hesitates repeatedly, or delays in an indecisive manner.

Etymology

Present tense form of the reduplicative verb 'dilly-dally,' which combines unclear origins (possibly 'dilly' as 'delay' and 'dally' meaning to flirt or waste time).

Kelly Says

In workplace studies, researchers found that 'dillydallies' are often people who fear making wrong decisions more than they fear wasting time—the verb literally describes the symptom of decision paralysis!

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