To waste time, be indecisive, or move slowly without purpose; to delay unnecessarily.
A reduplicative term from 1600s English combining repetitive sounds for emphasis. Possibly blends 'dilly' (variant of 'dally,' meaning to waste time or flirt) with 'dally,' creating circular time-wasting in sound.
The word's 'echo' structure perfectly mirrors what it means—when you say 'dilly-dally,' your mouth repeats the same motion twice, just like someone indecisively going back and forth!
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