# dawdle

> English word · Verb · IPA /ˈdɔːdl̩/ · frequency rank #97,999

## Definitions
1. Chiefly followed by away: to spend (time) without haste or purpose.
2. To spend time idly and unfruitfully; to waste time.
3. To move or walk lackadaisically.

## Etymology
The verb is possibly:
* a variant of daddle (“(Britain, dialectal) to walk or work slowly, dawdle, saunter, trifle”) or doddle (“(Britain, dialectal) to walk feebly or slowly, dawdle, idle, saunter, stroll”), possibly influenced by daw (“(Britain, dialectal) lazy, good-for-nothing person, sluggard”); or
* borrowed from Middle Low German dȫdelen (“to dawdle”), related to Saterland Frisian döädelje (“to dawdle”); compare also German daddeln (“to play”), German verdaddeln (“to waste (time), neglect, ruin”). All of these words are assumed to be of imitative origin.
The noun is derived from the verb.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/dawdle