Green’s Dictionary of Slang

to dither, to talk nonsense; thus waffling/whaffling n. and adj., talking nonsense.

1890–1904		Farmer & Henley Sl. and Its Analogues VII 281/2: Waffle [...] to talk incessantly [...] at Durham school to talk nonsense.
1909		J. Ware Passing Eng. of the Victorian Era 268/1: Woffle (Music Hall and Music generally). To mask, evade, manipulate a note or even difficult passage.
1946		(con. 1912) B. Marshall George Brown’s Schooldays 89: I’ll do the dirty work but spare us your silly ass of a whaffling pater.
1954		A. Buckeridge According to Jennings (1991) 68: Well, we’re getting that holiday he woffled about.
1957		A. Buckeridge Thanks to Jennings (1988) 169: What are you waffling about?
1962		H. Livings Nil Carborundum (1963) Act II: Stop waffling, Mr Keighly, this is deadly serious.
1976		C. Dexter Last Seen Wearing in Second Morse Omnibus (1994) 360: He was getting lost: waffle on, keep talking.
1992		R.G. Barrett White Shoes 46: Norton and Ddes waffled on to each other.
1999		Indep. Rev. 28 July 2: Waffle away about this and that.
2000		Indep. on Sun. 23 Jan. 26: He accused Mr Blair and his government of waffling.
2019		S. Bythell Confessions of a Bookseller 148: If Nicky had been here they would have waffled on together for hours.
2020		W. Boyd Trio 123: She waffled on about the rare wine-drinking opportunities the Tate’s restaurant provided.