I. ˈdilē, -li noun
( -es )
Etymology: by shortening & alteration
1. obsolete : diligence II
2. now dialect England : any of various horse-drawn vehicles (as a light wagon or cart)
3. : a haulage system on a short incline in a mine
II. noun
( -es )
Etymology: origin unknown
dialect England : duck
III. noun
( -es )
Etymology: short for daffadilly
: daffodil
IV. noun
( -es )
Etymology: by shortening & alteration
1. : sapodilla 1
2. : a small tree ( Mimusops emarginata ) of Florida and the West Indies having hard dark brown wood susceptible of a fine polish and small edible fruits — called also wild dilly, wild sapodilla
V. adjective
Etymology: perhaps blend of dippy and silly
slang chiefly Australia : silly , foolish
VI. noun
( -es )
Etymology: obsolete slang dilly, adjective, delightful, irregular from English del- (from delightful ) + -y
: one that is remarkably good or successful or strikingly different : something spectacular or extraordinary
a dilly of a trial novel — Donald Gordon
a dilly of a doll who, off screen, looks younger, is even prettier, and is just as witty — Helen Colton
I have a long-standing and legitimate interest in middle names having been christened with a dilly myself — Alfred Gilliland Miller
another joker was the Veterans of Future Wars — some guys in Princeton cooked that dilly up — Martin Dibner
— not often in formal use
VII. intransitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-es )
Etymology: by shortening
: dillydally