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Dawdle vs Dwindle - What's the difference?

dawdle | dwindle |

In intransitive terms the difference between dawdle and dwindle

is that dawdle is to move or walk lackadaisically while dwindle is to decrease, shrink, diminish, reduce in size.

As a noun dawdle

is a dawdler.

dawdle

English

Verb

(dawdl)
  • To spend time idly and unfruitfully, to waste time.
  • * {{quote-news
    • , year=2011 , date=October 29 , author=Neil Johnston , title=Norwich 3 - 3 Blackburn , work=BBC Sport citation , page= , passage=However all Hennessey's good work went to waste on 52 minutes when he dawdled on the ball.}}
  • * Johnson
    • Come some evening and dawdle over a dish of tea with me.
  • To spend (time) without haste or purpose.
    • to dawdle away the whole morning
  • To move or walk lackadaisically.
    • If you dawdle on your daily walk, you won't get as much exercise.
  • * Thackeray
    • We dawdle up and down Pall Mall.

    See also

    * dally, dander, dandle, diddle, loaf, piddle, wander, doodle

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • A dawdler.

    • Anagrams

    * English intransitive verbs

    dwindle

    English

    Verb

    (dwindl)
  • To decrease, shrink, diminish, reduce in size.
  • * 1802 , , translated by T. Paynell,
    • [E]very thing that was improving gradually degenerates and dwindles away to nothing,
  • (figuratively) To fall away in quality; degenerate, sink.
    • The flattery of his friends began to dwindle into simple approbation.'' (''Goldsmith , Vicar, III)
  • * Jonathan Swift
    • Religious societies, though begun with excellent intentions, are said to have dwindled into factious clubs.
  • * 1919 ,
    • The larger the empire, the more dwindles the mind of the citizen.
  • * '>citation
  • To lessen; to bring low.
  • * Thomson
    • Our drooping days are dwindled down to naught.
  • To break; to disperse.
    • (Clarendon)

    References