dilly dally
2 antonyms and opposites of dilly dally, grouped by meaning.
Verb — To waste time by moving too slowly or by being unable to make up your mind.
Antonyms
How to use dilly dally
The word patterns that sound natural to a native speaker.
Informal and slightly old-fashioned or playful; common when speaking to children.
Etymology
A reduplication of dally 'to waste time, linger'.
Full origin of dilly dally →Frequently asked questions
Is it dilly dally, dilly-dally or dillydally?
All three appear in print. British dictionaries usually hyphenate it as dilly-dally; American dictionaries often close it up as dillydally. The open two-word form is common in casual writing.
What is the difference between dilly dally and dawdle?
Dawdle is about being slow — walking, eating or working at a crawl. Dilly dally adds indecision and pointless detours: the dilly dallier is not just slow but keeps stopping, changing their mind and getting distracted.