Time Wasters: Lollygag and Dillydally
2021-09-19
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1And now, Words and Their Stories from VOA Learning English.
2On this program we explore words and expressions in the English language.
3Today, we begin with a story about two good friends: Caleb and Corrine.
4They have a lot in common.
5They like the same books, enjoy the same movies and play the same sports.
6But, the friends are also quite different in the way they live their lives.
7Corrine is a planner.
8She always has a schedule.
9And she likes to makes lists.
10She is always on time and knows exactly where she is going.
11Caleb is a free spirit.
12He likes things unplanned and likes to see where the road takes him.
13In fact, sometimes he does not know exactly where he is going.
14One day, these two friends decided to go shopping together.
15You might find it surprising that something like shopping would test their friendship. But it did.
16To Corrine shopping is an unpleasant task.
17So, she does it as quickly as possible.
18She goes to stores as soon as they open. And she buys only what she needs.
19To Caleb shopping is an adventure!
20He likes to linger in front of store windows.
21He looks at the objects for sale for a long time without even stepping inside the store.
22This activity, that is popular with some, is called window shopping.
23Caleb does not pay much attention to his shopping list.
24In fact, he usually doesn't have one.
25He likes to browse. And he says that browsing has resulted in some of his best purchases.
26Well, he calls it browsing. Corrine calls is dawdling, or wasting time.
27And that is where their problems started.
28The two had decided they would have a party.
29They had to shop to buy party equipment, like pretty dishes and tablecloths.
30They also needed to buy flowers, balloons and other decorations.
31This meant going to several different stores.
32Caleb wanted to browse to help him get ideas for the party.
33Corrine just wanted to buy what they needed and leave. It was not going well.
34Finally, when Caleb lingered too long again at a window display, Corrine said, "Can you please stop dillydallying. You've been lollygagging this whole time and I just want to go home!"
35Caleb turned to her and said, "I am not dillydallying. Nor am I lollygagging. This is how I shop. If you feel like this is wasting time, then you can go home."
36Corrine thought about it and said, "That is the best idea I have heard all day!"
37While Caleb shopped, Corrine could start making food for the party.
38It was a good idea to separate and do different tasks.
39The party was a success, and their friendship survived.
40Now, back to our words: Lollygag and dillydally.
41They are funny sounding words.
42People who fool around during tasks can be said to "lollygag."
43People who "dillydally" move or act slowly.
44And as we said earlier, these words also mean "dawdle."
45Lollygaggers, dillydalliers, and dawdlers all waste time.
46We usually use these words to describe people who move or act slowly to avoid doing something unpleasant.
47Here's another example.
48A parent might accuse their child of lollygagging on their way to school.
49Or a teacher might accuse a student of dillydallying before starting a test or homework.
50Sometimes we just say dally.
51So, a parent could warn a child, "Don't dally at the playground after school. Come straight home!"
52Although, that usage is a little less common.
53And please note when you say someone is dillydallying or lollygagging, as Corrine did with Caleb, they might take offense.
54And that's all the time we have for this Words and Their Stories.
55Until next time ... Anna Matteo.
1And now, Words and Their Stories from VOA Learning English. 2On this program we explore words and expressions in the English language. 3Today, we begin with a story about two good friends: Caleb and Corrine. They have a lot in common. They like the same books, enjoy the same movies and play the same sports. 4But, the friends are also quite different in the way they live their lives. 5Corrine is a planner. She always has a schedule. And she likes to makes lists. She is always on time and knows exactly where she is going. 6Caleb is a free spirit. He likes things unplanned and likes to see where the road takes him. In fact, sometimes he does not know exactly where he is going. 7One day, these two friends decided to go shopping together. You might find it surprising that something like shopping would test their friendship. But it did. 8To Corrine shopping is an unpleasant task. So, she does it as quickly as possible. She goes to stores as soon as they open. And she buys only what she needs. 9To Caleb shopping is an adventure! He likes to linger in front of store windows. He looks at the objects for sale for a long time without even stepping inside the store. This activity, that is popular with some, is called window shopping. 10Caleb does not pay much attention to his shopping list. In fact, he usually doesn't have one. He likes to browse. And he says that browsing has resulted in some of his best purchases. 11Well, he calls it browsing. Corrine calls is dawdling, or wasting time. And that is where their problems started. 12The two had decided they would have a party. They had to shop to buy party equipment, like pretty dishes and tablecloths. They also needed to buy flowers, balloons and other decorations. 13This meant going to several different stores. Caleb wanted to browse to help him get ideas for the party. Corrine just wanted to buy what they needed and leave. It was not going well. 14Finally, when Caleb lingered too long again at a window display, Corrine said, "Can you please stop dillydallying. You've been lollygagging this whole time and I just want to go home!" 15Caleb turned to her and said, "I am not dillydallying. Nor am I lollygagging. This is how I shop. If you feel like this is wasting time, then you can go home." 16Corrine thought about it and said, "That is the best idea I have heard all day!" While Caleb shopped, Corrine could start making food for the party. 17It was a good idea to separate and do different tasks. The party was a success, and their friendship survived. 18Now, back to our words: Lollygag and dillydally. They are funny sounding words. 19People who fool around during tasks can be said to "lollygag." People who "dillydally" move or act slowly. 20And as we said earlier, these words also mean "dawdle." 21Lollygaggers, dillydalliers, and dawdlers all waste time. We usually use these words to describe people who move or act slowly to avoid doing something unpleasant. 22Here's another example. A parent might accuse their child of lollygagging on their way to school. Or a teacher might accuse a student of dillydallying before starting a test or homework. Sometimes we just say dally. So, a parent could warn a child, "Don't dally at the playground after school. Come straight home!" Although, that usage is a little less common. 23And please note when you say someone is dillydallying or lollygagging, as Corrine did with Caleb, they might take offense. 24And that's all the time we have for this Words and Their Stories. Until next time ... Anna Matteo. 25Anna Matteo wrote this story for VOA Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor. 26_________________________________________________ 27Words in This Story 28schedule - n. a plan of things that need to be done and the times they will be done 29free spirit - adj. a person who thinks and acts in an uninhibited way without worrying about normal social rules 30adventure - n. an undertaking usually involving danger and unknown risks 31linger - v. to be slow to act : to move slowly 32browse - v. to look at many things in a store, in a newspaper, etc., to see if there is something interesting or worth buying 33dawdle - v. to spend time wastefully : DALLY : to move slowly and without purpose 34decoration - n. something that is added to something else to make it more attractive