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From: Christian Weisgerber <naddy@mips.inka.de>
Newsgroups: sci.lang,alt.usage.english
Subject: Re: To waffle, =?UTF-8?Q?=E2=80=98to?= waver, to vacillate, to
 equivocate, to =?UTF-8?Q?dither=E2=80=99?=
Date: Thu, 25 Apr 2024 12:57:58 -0000 (UTC)
Message-ID: <slrnv2kkqm.2a3m.naddy@lorvorc.mips.inka.de>
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On 2024-04-25, Aidan Kehoe <kehoea@parhasard.net> wrote:

> Speaking (in sci.lang) of Andy Grove, he uses waffle in the above sense in his
> good, well-edited ‘High Output Management.’ In my youth I would only have used
> or understood the word in the meaning ‘to ramble on, to say nothing of much
> consequence,’

I'm not familiar with that meaning.

> I presume I have misunderstood various Americans over the years in not picking
> up on the ‘dither’ meaning. How universal is that meaning over there?

That's the meaning I know, so presumably it is prevalent in AmE.

The Britannica Dictionary (formerly Merriam-Webster Learner's
Dictionary), which is very good at giving the prevalent meanings
in contemporary usage, says:

1 US : to be unable or unwilling to make a clear decision about
  what to do
2 British : to talk or write a lot without saying anything important
  or interesting
https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/waffle

-- 
Christian "naddy" Weisgerber                          naddy@mips.inka.de