deliberation

American  

[dih-lib-uh-rey-shuhn] / dɪˌlɪb əˈreɪ ʃən /

noun

• deliberations
  plural

1. careful consideration before decision.

   Synonyms:

   forethought, reflection

2. formal consultation or discussion.

3. deliberate quality; leisureliness of movement or action; slowness.

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deliberation British  

/ dɪˌlɪbəˈreɪʃən /

noun

1. thoughtful, careful, or lengthy consideration

2. (often plural) formal discussion and debate, as of a committee, jury, etc

3. care, thoughtfulness, or absence of hurry, esp in movement or speech

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nondeliberation
  noun
• overdeliberation
  noun
• predeliberation
  noun
• redeliberation
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• deliberations
  plural

Etymology

Origin of deliberation

1325–75; Middle English deliberacion < Latin dēlīberātiōn- (stem of dēlīberātiō ), equivalent to dēlīberāt ( us ) ( see deliberate) + -iōn- -ion

Explanation

The process of carefully considering what to do is called deliberation, like your deliberation before making one of the most important decisions in your life. The noun deliberation comes from the Latin word deliberare, meaning “weigh,” or “consider well.” Whenever a person or group needs to work through all of the possible solutions to a problem, this is deliberation. Something that is deliberate is done on purpose, not by chance or accident — deliberation carries this same spirit, in that it is a carefully thought-out process of making a decision.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

deliberation deliberations

I trimmed my bangs after a six-week deliberation.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026

The State Department declined to say whether Lex Libertas will be among those invited to compete, saying the grant is still under deliberation.

From Salon ● Jul. 21, 2026

Judge Paul Thomas KC accepted a majority verdict on the charge of wounding with intent, which meant at least 10 jurors agreed following four hours deliberation.

From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026

"This has implications for critical real-world scenarios, like when a radiologist can accurately classify masses on an X-ray as benign or malignant fairly automatically, often without extensive deliberation, thanks to years of training," Cox said.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 12, 2026

After much deliberation and discussions with Soros, Farmer and Jim agreed to take on Tomsk.

From "Mountains Beyond Mountains" by Tracy Kidder and Michael French

A jury began deliberations on Monday in the trial of a former Los Angeles gang leader accused of involvement in the sensational murder three decades ago of chart-topping rapper Tupac Shakur.

From Barron's ● Aug. 31, 2026

“Industry just says, ‘Shucks, write us another check,’” said one defense congressional staffer, who requested anonymity to speak about internal defense spending deliberations.

From Salon ● Aug. 20, 2026

But the most intriguing aspect of the appeal document submitted by Erin Patterson's lawyers relates to the jury deliberations.

From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026

The draft rules would require more documentation from parents who are homeless or unemployed, the people familiar with the deliberations told the Associated Press.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 3, 2026

He ran a long feature on George Vandeveer, charlatan attorney for the Wobbly defense in the Everett Massacre deliberations.

From "Snow Falling on Cedars: A Novel" by David Guterson

Related Words

• conference
• consideration
• consultation
• debate
• speculation