different between totter vs daddle

English

Etymology

From Middle English totren, toteren, from earlier *tolteren (compare dialectal English tolter (“to struggle, flounder”); Scots tolter (“unstable, wonky”)), from Old English tealtrian (“to totter, vacillate”), from Proto-Germanic *taltr?n?, a frequentative form of Proto-Germanic *talt?n? (“to sway, dangle, hesitate”), from Proto-Indo-European *del-, *dul- (“to shake, hesitate”). Cognate with Dutch touteren (“to tremble”), Norwegian dialectal totra (“to quiver, shake”), North Frisian talt, tolt (“unstable, shaky”). Related to tilt.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /?t?t?/
• (US) IPA^(key): /?t??t?/
• Rhymes: -?t?(r)

Verb

totter (third-person singular simple present totters, present participle tottering, simple past and past participle tottered) (intransitive)

1. To walk, move or stand unsteadily or falteringly; threatening to fall.
2. (figuratively) To be on the brink of collapse.
3. (archaic) To collect junk or scrap.

Synonyms

• (move unsteadily): reel, teeter, toddle, stagger, sway

Derived terms

• teeter-totter
• totterer
• tottergrass
• tottering
• totteringly
• tottersome
• tottery

Translations

Noun

totter (plural totters)

1. An unsteady movement or gait.
2. (archaic) A rag and bone man.

Translations

English

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /?dæd??/

Etymology 1

Probably dade +? -le.

Verb

daddle (third-person singular simple present daddles, present participle daddling, simple past and past participle daddled)

1. (intransitive, archaic or dialectal) To walk unsteadily; totter; dawdle
   • 1869, Thomas Collins, The life of the rev. Thos. Collins

     I had to wait an hour at the station for the coming of his train. It was passed pleasantly in reading, ' The Victory Won,' an interesting narrative of the salvation of a sceptical physician. When uncle arrived, he and I daddled along a pretty narrow lane.

2. To diddle (cheat)
   • 1883, Robert Louis Stevenson, Treasure Island

     "Thunder!" he cried. "A week! I can't do that; they'd have the black spot on me by then. The lubbers is going about to get the wind of me this blessed moment; lubbers as couldn't keep what they got, and want to nail what is another's. Is that seamanly behavior, now, I want to know? But I'm a saving soul. I never wasted good money of mine, nor lost it neither; and I'll trick 'em again. I'm not afraid on 'em. I'll shake out another reef, matey, and daddle 'em again."

Etymology 2

Noun

daddle (plural daddles)

1. (slang, obsolete) The hand or fist; used in the phrase "tip us your daddle" meaning "give me your hand".

Derived terms

• diddle-daddle
• tip the daddle

Anagrams

• addled