DAWDLE Synonyms: 144 Similar and Opposite Words

Q: How is the word 'dawdle' different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of dawdle are dally , delay , lag , loiter , and procrastinate . While all these words mean "to move or act slowly so as to fall behind," loiter and dawdle imply delay while in progress, especially in walking, but dawdle more clearly suggests an aimless wasting of time. // loitered at several store windows // children dawdling on their way home from school

Q: Where would 'dally' be a reasonable alternative to 'dawdle'?

The words dally and dawdle can be used in similar contexts, but dally suggests delay through trifling or vacillation when promptness is necessary. // stop dallying and get to work

Q: When might 'delay' be a better fit than 'dawdle'?

The meanings of delay and dawdle largely overlap; however, delay usually implies a putting off of something (such as a beginning or departure). // we cannot delay any longer

Q: In what contexts can 'lag' take the place of 'dawdle'?

While in some cases nearly identical to dawdle , lag implies failure to maintain a speed set by others. // lagging behind in technology

Q: When is 'procrastinate' a more appropriate choice than 'dawdle'?

The synonyms procrastinate and dawdle are sometimes interchangeable, but procrastinate implies blameworthy delay especially through laziness or apathy. // procrastinates about making decisions

dawdle

verb

ˈdȯ-dᵊl

Definition of dawdle

as in to delay

to move or act slowly if you continue to dawdle, we'll be late for sure

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in to lazy

to spend time doing nothing accused the city council of dawdling even as the crime rate was spiraling out of control

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How is the word dawdle different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of dawdle are dally, delay, lag, loiter, and procrastinate. While all these words mean "to move or act slowly so as to fall behind," loiter and dawdle imply delay while in progress, especially in walking, but dawdle more clearly suggests an aimless wasting of time.

loitered at several store windows

children dawdling on their way home from school

Where would dally be a reasonable alternative to dawdle?

The words dally and dawdle can be used in similar contexts, but dally suggests delay through trifling or vacillation when promptness is necessary.

stop dallying and get to work

When might delay be a better fit than dawdle?

The meanings of delay and dawdle largely overlap; however, delay usually implies a putting off of something (such as a beginning or departure).

we cannot delay any longer

In what contexts can lag take the place of dawdle?

While in some cases nearly identical to dawdle, lag implies failure to maintain a speed set by others.

lagging behind in technology

When is procrastinate a more appropriate choice than dawdle?

The synonyms procrastinate and dawdle are sometimes interchangeable, but procrastinate implies blameworthy delay especially through laziness or apathy.

procrastinates about making decisions

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of dawdle But Koreeda dawdles over all that without ever finding much dramatic nuance, making for a dullish midsection. — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 16 May 2026 Patriots owner Robert Kraft didn’t dawdle last winter after the Patriots went 4-13 with Maye as their main QB. — Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 Jan. 2026 Flight attendants turned into drill sergeants, barking at passengers who flouted mask rules or dawdled too long eating that snack with the mask off. — Thomas Black, Twin Cities, 21 Dec. 2025 My request to ownership is don’t dawdle. — Dp Opinion, Denver Post, 19 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for dawdle

Recent Examples of Synonyms for dawdle

Verb

During the first quarter of this year, around $130 billion worth of data center projects were blocked or delayed due to local opposition, according to a report from Data Center Watch.

— Ashley Capoot, CNBC, 29 Aug. 2026
The classroom pipeline feeds directly into Russia’s conscription system, which requires all 18-year-old men to complete one year’s military service, though in reality many avoid or delay being drafted.

— Bloomberg, Fortune, 29 Aug. 2026

Definition of delay

Verb

Patterson, who turns 27 on Tuesday, has experience at guard and center, and the 49ers needed a backup at both spots considering Toth’s lingering concussion symptoms.

— Matt Barrows, New York Times, 31 Aug. 2026
Inside Fort Worth's Cowboy Coliseum, a historic 1908 indoor rodeo venue in the heart of the city's famous Stockyards, the gunpowdery smell of pyrotechnics lingers in the air.

— Christine Lennon, Condé Nast Traveler, 30 Aug. 2026

Definition of linger

Verb

The colony also has a population of New Zealand fur seals that laze around the rocks frequented by flocks of seabirds.

— Todd Symons, CNN Money, 22 July 2026
The pigs that would soon enough become lunch lazed in the compost-pile mud in front of a five-star-hotel-worthy view of the Cretan Sea.

— Shannon McMahon, Condé Nast Traveler, 1 July 2026

Definition of laze

Verb

Installation doesn’t require crews to manually crawl along hundreds of miles of line.

— Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 2 Sep. 2026
The Leao Tires subbrand has a huge range of truck, bus, and tractor tires for everything from daily driving on pavement to slow crawling through muddy farm fields.

— Michael Febbo, The Drive, 2 Sep. 2026

Definition of crawl

Verb

Direct flights have resumed between India and China, a few old Silk Road trade routes have opened, and in March India relaxed rules around investment from Beijing.

— Evelyn Cheng,Priyanka Salve, CNBC, 31 Aug. 2026
Fences, hedges, noise machines, and relaxing music can all help.

— R. Eric Thomas, Chicago Tribune, 29 Aug. 2026

Definition of relax

Verb

The joy Lisa has with her RHUGT cast compared with the dread her RHOSLC cast seems to bring her really bums me out — especially because of how much of this trip is championing the sisterhood of Housewives.

— Tom Smyth, Vulture, 31 Aug. 2026
My conversation partner returned, somehow unable to bum even a single cigarette from anyone at this party.

— Sam Stone, Bon Appetit Magazine, 29 July 2026

Definition of bum

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“Dawdle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dawdle. Accessed 5 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of dawdle

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