Boozer
12-09-05, 06:16PM
shilly-shally • \SHIL-ee-shal-ee\ • adverb
: in an irresolute, undecided, or hesitating manner
Example sentence:
"Don't stand shilly-shally like a fool, Ned. Just make up your mind and marry the woman," advised Gretchen.
Did you know?
Shall I? Shall I? When you just don't know what to do, it may feel as if asking that question twice will somehow help you decide. The early 1600s saw the use of the phrase "stand shall I, shall I" to describe vacillation or indecision. By 1700, the phrase had been altered to "shill I, shall I," most likely because people just liked the vowel alteration (that's the same process that gave us "dillydally" and "wishy-washy"). Soon after, the form "shilly-shally" made the jump from slang to literature, and by the late 1700s it was being used not only as an adverb, but also as an adjective, a noun, and a verb.
"Don't be shilly-shally," the drunk told his wife (Sally) when she suggested he'd had enough to drink.
: in an irresolute, undecided, or hesitating manner
Example sentence:
"Don't stand shilly-shally like a fool, Ned. Just make up your mind and marry the woman," advised Gretchen.
Did you know?
Shall I? Shall I? When you just don't know what to do, it may feel as if asking that question twice will somehow help you decide. The early 1600s saw the use of the phrase "stand shall I, shall I" to describe vacillation or indecision. By 1700, the phrase had been altered to "shill I, shall I," most likely because people just liked the vowel alteration (that's the same process that gave us "dillydally" and "wishy-washy"). Soon after, the form "shilly-shally" made the jump from slang to literature, and by the late 1700s it was being used not only as an adverb, but also as an adjective, a noun, and a verb.
"Don't be shilly-shally," the drunk told his wife (Sally) when she suggested he'd had enough to drink.