defer

¹ American  

[dih-fur] / dɪˈfɜr /

verb (used with object)

deferred, deferring

1. 

   to put off (action, consideration, etc.) to a future time.

   The decision has been deferred by the board until next week.

2. to exempt temporarily from induction into military service.

---

verb (used without object)

deferred, deferring

1. to put off action; delay.

defer ² American  

[dih-fur] / dɪˈfɜr /

verb (used without object)

deferred, deferring

1. to yield respectfully in judgment or opinion (usually followed byto ).

   We all defer to him in these matters.

   Synonyms:

   capitulate, acquiesce, submit, accede

---

verb (used with object)

deferred, deferring

1. to submit for decision; refer.

   We defer questions of this kind to the president.

defer ¹ British  

/ dɪˈfɜː /

verb

1. (tr) to delay or cause to be delayed until a future time; postpone

---

defer ² British  

/ dɪˈfɜː /

verb

1. to yield (to) or comply (with) the wishes or judgments of another

   I defer to your superior knowledge

---

Synonym Usage

Defer, delay, postpone imply keeping something from occurring until a future time. To defer is to decide to do something later on: to defer making a payment. To delay is sometimes equivalent to defer, but usually it is to act in a dilatory manner and thus lay something aside: to delay one's departure. To postpone a thing is to put it off to (usually) some particular time in the future, with the intention of beginning or resuming it then: to postpone an election. procrastinate.

Other Word Forms

• deferrer
  noun
• deferrable
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of defer¹

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English deferen, differren “to delay”; see defer ² differ

Origin of defer²

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English deferren, from Latin dēferre “to carry from or down, report, accuse,” equivalent to dē- “from, away from, out of” + ferre “to carry”; see de-, bear ¹

Explanation

Defer means to put off or delay. You can try to defer the inevitable by pushing “snooze” and falling back asleep, but eventually you're going to have to get up. If you're excellent at pushing things to a later date and a master at procrastination, then you already know how to defer. But defer can also mean to comply with another person’s opinion or wishes. So when your boss finds out you deferred your work to shop online instead, you should probably defer when she asks you to come in and finish everything up over the weekend.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

defer deferred deferring

If so, I’ll defer to what my father told me was mine: asking annoying questions.

From Salon ● Oct. 2, 2026

"Our goal is to give each organization the facts and defer to them on if and when to make the incident public," it said.

From BBC ● Sep. 26, 2026

Dell Chief Executive Michael Dell said at an analyst conference this month that the average age of PCs people and companies own would be older, and they would defer upgrades.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 23, 2026

The 2026 limit on what you can defer from your paycheck is $24,500, or $32,500 if you’re 50 or older.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 3, 2026

"So it is, and so we should defer this matter until the king—" "The king is hunting across the river and may not re-turn for days," Lord Eddard said.

From "A Game of Thrones" by George R.R. Martin

Switzerland's system of direct democracy means major political decisions are often deferred to the voters through referenda.

From BBC ● Sep. 27, 2026

On Tuesday, Riley deferred a question about Mosley’s return timetable to the availability report.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 24, 2026

Asked about the Post's reporting, the Kennedy Center declined to comment and referred AFP to a recent statement from spokesperson Roma Daravi blaming "decades of neglect and deferred maintenance by the previous leadership."

From Barron's ● Sep. 14, 2026

Maintenance activity could also pick up as operators gain greater cash-flow visibility to resume deferred work, he says.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026

So my dream was deferred that morning, but I wasn’t going to give up.

From "Reaching for the Moon" by Katherine Johnson

Whenever “Primetime” comes close to a deeper truth, the film backs off entirely, deferring to Pattinson to deliver the intended magnitude.

From Salon ● Sep. 26, 2026

Yes, some of the gains are due to inflation, but the owner also benefits from deferring the tax until the asset is sold.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 31, 2026

The payments are the result of the Mets in 2000 deferring the last $5.9 million of his four-year contract after releasing him on the heels of a .160 batting average.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 1, 2026

If both sides decide the costs of the war are becoming unbearable, they could cut an agreement that stops the fighting while deferring decisions on the toughest issues.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 25, 2026

“Good morning, Auntie,” she said, deferring to the respectful greeting for an elder.

From "Beasts of Prey" by Ayana Gray

Related Words

• adjourn
• delay
• extend
• hold up
• postpone
• prolong
• set aside
• shelve
• stall
• suspend
• waive