drag one's feet en · VERB
Pronunciation
- (Australia) audio
Etymology
From the idea of walking while dragging one's feet along the ground, either from lack of enthusiasm or to intentionally slow down movement. Compare dig in one's heels (“firmly oppose”).
Meanings
-
(idiomatic) To procrastinate, put off; to dawdle, avoid, or make progress slowly and reluctantly.
I have been dragging my feet about filing my taxes.
Yet ministers continue to drag their feet, appearing to obstinately prefer any option other than the obvious, while also saying, as Lord Hendy did on January 19: "It is clear that the West Coast Main Line is full of trains. There's no space left."
2026 February 4, Philip Haigh, “Northern England deserves a more coherent rail plan”, in RAIL, number 1054, page 51:There was much to love about this last season, from the tense opening barfight to the finale shootout with the IRA, which was so disorientingly murky and gas-filled it felt otherworldly. But it struggled to ever quite get going, with the first five episodes dragging their feet in a way that began to frustrate.
2022 December 27, Alexi Duggins, Hollie Richardson, Kate Abbott, “The Rings of Power to Conversations With Friends: 2022’s TV letdowns”, in The Guardian:
- (idiomatic) To intentionally stall, to delay, to obstruct.
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| dragging one's feet | Tense=Pres, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic | |
| dragged one's feet | Tense=Past, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic | |
| dragged one's feet | Tense=Past | lexicographic | |
| drags one's feet | Number=Sing, Person=3, Tense=Pres | lexicographic |
Coordinates
plant one's feet · dig in one's heels · dig one's heels in
Deriveds
Relateds
Synonyms
slow-walk · dilly-dally · drag one's heels
Translations (15)
fi hidastella (procrastinate) · ru волочи́ть но́ги (procrastinate) · pl poleźć (procrastinate) · ru тяну́ть рези́ну (procrastinate) · izh kähnätä (procrastinate) · ka ფეხს ითრევს (procrastinate) · hu húzza az időt (procrastinate) · fr traîner les pieds (procrastinate) · pl leźć (procrastinate) · ru тяну́ть волы́нку (procrastinate) · de herumtrödeln (procrastinate) · es marear la perdiz (procrastinate) · it tirarla per le lunghe (procrastinate) · pl ociągać się (procrastinate) · pl guzdrać się (procrastinate)