noun Plural dillies North American informal usually in singular An excellent example of a particular type of person or thing.
‘that's a dilly of a breakfast recipe’
More example sentences
‘At only $14.95 it's a dilly of a deal for this long sold-out series, previously available only in hardcover (if you could find it).’ ‘The nameless viewpoint racer is making 'one last run', and it's a dilly.’ ‘This is their first effort to publish a shotshell reloading manual, and it's a dilly.’ ‘If the case holds us upon real scrutiny, it's going to be a dilly.’ Origin Late 19th century (as an adjective in the sense ‘delightful’): alteration of the first syllable of delightful or delicious.
adjective dillier, dilliest NZ, Australian dated, informal Odd; foolish.
Example sentences
‘She'll get it dirty, get it trodden on, silly, dilly girl.’ ‘‘This is a double dilly sale,’ the youth desperately screams, then cocks his head in amazement of the sentence he just uttered.’ Synonyms
eccentric , bizarre, weird, peculiar, odd, quirky, avant-garde, unconventional, off-centre, strange, outlandish, ridiculous, ludicrous
View synonyms Origin Late 19th century: perhaps a blend of daft and silly.