pussyfoots
Treads very carefully
Pussyfoots means moves cautiously or stealthily, like a cat.
Someone who pussyfoots around an issue avoids addressing it directly: Stop pussyfooting and tell me what you really think.
The word suggests timidity or excessive caution, often with a note of impatience from the speaker.
Evades by moving aside
- hedgesPlanted boundary lines
- equivocatesSpeaks ambiguously to mislead
- dodgesEvades with quick movement
- skirtsLower-body garments for women
avoids · deflects · circumvents · waffles · beats around the bush · tiptoes around · shies away · soft-pedals
Walks on foot-fronts
- creepsUnsettling individuals
- sneaksMoves with furtive care
- prowlsMoves stealthily seeking prey
- slinksMoves with furtive stealth
pads · steals · glides · sidles · treads lightly · catlike · light-footed · skulks
Fails to decide
- vacillatesFluctuates between positions
- dithersHesitates with agitation
- faltersLoses steadiness or confidence
- stallsDelays or compartments
delays · hem and haw · dallies · shilly-shallies · waffles · teeters · balks · hangs back
sidesteps
Evades by moving aside
- hedgesPlanted boundary lines
- equivocatesSpeaks ambiguously to mislead
- dodgesEvades with quick movement
skirts · avoids · deflects · circumvents · waffles · beats around the bush · tiptoes around · shies away · soft-pedals · sugarcoats
tiptoes
Walks on foot-fronts
slinks · pads · steals · glides · sidles · treads lightly · catlike · light-footed · skulks
wavers
Fails to decide
- vacillatesFluctuates between positions
- dithersHesitates with agitation
- faltersLoses steadiness or confidence
stalls · delays · hem and haw · dallies · shilly-shallies · waffles · teeters · balks · hangs back · holds back
pussyfootsconfronts
Addresses a problem directly
tells it like it is · cuts to the chase · gets to the point · dives in · barges in
pussyfootstakes the plunge
Acts despite uncertainty
commits · dives in · goes for it · takes action · forges ahead