hem and haw
To discuss, deliberate, or contemplate rather than taking action or making up one's mindTo discuss, deliberate, or contemplate rather than taking action or making up one's mind.
Meaning
2 senses(US, idiomatic)To discuss, deliberate, or contemplate rather than taking action or making up one's mind.
If you hem and haw long enough, someone else will do it first.
zögern und zaudern
колебатьсяkolebatʹsja
To mumble and procrastinate in one's speech, especially with a reply to a hard question or with voicing a decision on a topical matter; to evade a question, giving vague answers; to equivocate or temporize.
мямлитьmjamlitʹ
- utter ‘hems’ and ‘haws’; indicated hesitation
Examples
5 sentencesTranslations
3 languagesBy meaning 2
By meaning 1
Origin
hem + and + hawhem + and + haw
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Forms
hems and haws, hemming and hawing, hemmed and hawed, hemmed and hawed| Base form | hem and haw · to hem and haw |
|---|---|
| 3rd person singular | hems and haws |
| Present participle | hemming and hawing |
| Past simple | hemmed and hawed |
| Past participle | hemmed and hawed |
irregular
Synonyms
1 synonymsWord family
2 related wordsLessons for this word
3 lessons- A1Present simple — Because it is a verb
- A1Past simple, regular verbs — Because of its past form
- A2Present perfect: introduction — Because of its past participle
See also
neighbours in the dictionaryDictionary text adapted from Wiktionary (Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Open English WordNet / Princeton WordNet (CC BY 4.0, WordNet License); shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. Example sentences and recordings are credited where they appear.