Etymology

dalliance

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Today it means: Playful flirtation; amorous play. Full definition →

First used 14th c.Middle English daliaunce ← Old French dalier
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The story

  1. Old French · derived fromdalier
  2. Middle English · inherited fromdaliaunce
  3. English todaydalliance

From Middle English daliaunce et al., from dalien (“to exchange pleasantries, to chat; to flirt”), from Old French dalier, dailer. By surface analysis, dally + -ance.

First known use, by meaning

  • from 14th c. Playful flirtation; amorous play.
  • from 16th c. A wasting of time in idleness or trifles.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.