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Dally vs Bally - What's the difference?

dally | bally |

As a verb dally

is to waste time in voluptuous pleasures, or in idleness; to trifle.

As a noun dally

is several wraps of rope around the saddle horn, used to stop animals in.

As an adjective bally is

(british|dated|euphemistic) bloody; used as a mild intensifier.

As an adverb bally is

(uk|dated|euphemistic) very.

dally

English

Etymology 1

From (etyl)

Verb

  • To waste time in voluptuous pleasures, or in idleness; to trifle.
  • * Calamy
  • We have trifled too long already; it is madness to dally any longer.
  • * Barrow
  • We have put off God, and dallied with his grace.
  • To interchange caresses, especially of a sexual nature; to use fondling; to wanton; to sport (compare dalliance)
  • * Shakespeare
  • Not dallying with a brace of courtesans.
  • To delay unnecessarily; to while away.
  • To wind the lasso rope (ie throw-rope) around the saddle horn (the saddle horn is attached to the pommel of a western style saddle) after the roping of an animal
  • * 2003 , Jameson Parker, An Accidental Cowboy , page 89:
  • The end of the top rope he dallied around the gooseneck trailer hitch.
    Synonyms
    * dilly-dally

    Etymology 2

    Possibly from (etyl) "da le la vuelta ! " ("twist it around !") by law of Hobson-Jobson.

    Noun

    (dallies)
  • Several wraps of rope around the saddle horn, used to stop animals in .
  • * 1947 - Bruce Kiskaddon, Rhymes and Ranches
  • What matters is now if he tied hard and fast, / Or tumbled his steer with a dally .

    bally

    English

    Adjective

    (-)
  • (British, dated, euphemistic) bloody; used as a mild intensifier.
  • He's just a bally idiot.
  • *
  • Adverb

    (-)
  • (UK, dated, euphemistic) Very.
  • That was a bally foolish thing to do, old chap!

    Usage notes

    * Bally is almost exclusively used by the British upper classes.

    Synonyms

    * blasted, dashed English degree adverbs