dawdle

Related to dawdle: dawdle away

dawdle about

To waste time. If you want to get your allowance, quit dawdling about and do your chores!
See also: dawdle

dawdle along

To walk in a slow and unconcerned manner. We'll never get there on time if you boys keep dawdling along. Hurry up!
See also: dawdle

dawdle away

To waste time (often a specific amount of time that is stated after "away"). I had to stay up late finishing my book report because I dawdled away my whole afternoon.
See also: away, dawdle

dawdle over

To waste time rather than work diligently on something. If you keep dawdling over this book report, you'll be up all night!
See also: dawdle, over
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

dawdle about

to waste time in a place; to waste time talking idly. Don't dawdle about. Get moving. Tim has been dawdling about all morning.
See also: dawdle

dawdle along

to move along slowly and casually. The boys dawdled along on their way to school. We were just dawdling along, talking about life. We didn't know we were late.
See also: dawdle

dawdle over something

to waste time when one should be doing a particular task; to loaf while doing something. Don't dawdle over your hamburger. The lunch period ends in two minutes. Don't dawdle over it. Get it done.
See also: dawdle, over

dawdle something away

to waste a particular amount of time; to let a period of time slip away, wasted. You didn't finish your work because you dawdled most of your time away. You dawdle away too much time daydreaming.
See also: away, dawdle
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.
See also:
  • dawdle about
  • dawdle along
  • dawdle over
  • gain time
  • slowpoke
  • poke along
  • dawdle away
  • pick (one's) nose
  • roll (one's) sleeves up
  • roll sleeves up
References in periodicals archive
The experiments revealed that dawdle suppresses the activity of a gene called Atg8a, whose job is to spur the process of "autophagy" - the cleanup of misfolded proteins.
New finding hints at how lifespan may be prolonged by a fifth
Our visit being lastweek did not encourage us to dawdle. Nevertheless we felt a touch less antipathy to the scheme than on our daytime visits.
Square good in summer; Mail bag
Maybe I am wrong, as the others dash past me at well in excess of 60mph whilst I dawdle along at the proper limit.
Lament at bad drivers; YourSay
by the very lack of progress it looks set to dawdle on the full distance until culture year before it's finally finished.
Letter: Slow builders
Often, several males drop behind those who dawdle at a feeding site and drag branches in semicircles to herd them toward the main group.
Reach out and branch someone
Martin Bosley's gelding produced a particularly encouraging effort last time as he was only beaten one and threequarter lengths here despite an early dawdle and making his challenge up the unfavoured far rail.
BEHIND ENEMY LINES
The problem I find with older drivers is that, generally, they do tend to dawdle a bit while keeping within the speed limit, causing problems for other drivers who need to be at their destination, like, yesterday.
Crash course in driving; You Say Email:letters@liverpoolecho.co.uk uk
ALL alone I dawdle by the lapping sea As drizzle-dusk thickens the liquid day And silent night droops over the high crags Smoothing-soothing their harsh outlines.
Reader's poem; OH I DO LIKE TO BE BESIDE THE SEASIDE
Yenaled likes to strike late off a strong pace so hopefully they won't dawdle in their early paces.
RACING: BROWN FOR FOUR-TIMER
The New Zealand captain, hope of victory apparently gone, instructed his batsmen to dawdle and allow South Africa a hefty victory margin.
'Blessed are they that mourn for they shall be comforted' DUBLIN DEBACLE: Wales and their fans can seek solace in the good book
Riding the trail is a dawdle. One of the Hicks gang leads you off at a safe, leisurely pace for an hour-long ride.
ESCAPE; A Mustang Sally into Texas
My NHS colleagues and I will be staffing your local hospitals day and night over the festive period 24/7 so if my days off are in the week I will "dawdle" all I like.
Self centred; You Say Email:letters@liverpoolecho.co.uk
I was utterly confident it would be a dawdle to come up with something that would sound equally right as an opening line.
The Razz: Jim's hit simply too corny