postpone
Americanverb (used with object)
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postpones,
present (3rd person singular)
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postponed,
past participle, past
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postponing
present participle
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to put off to a later time; defer.
He has postponed his departure until tomorrow.
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to place after in order of importance or estimation; subordinate.
to postpone private ambitions to the public welfare.
verb
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to put off or delay until a future time
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to put behind in order of importance; defer
Synonym Usage
See defer 1.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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postponementnoun
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postponernoun
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repostponeverb (used with object)
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nonpostponableadjective
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postponableadjective
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unpostponableadjective
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unpostponedadjective
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well-postponedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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postponesimple
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postponessimple
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have postponedperfect
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has postponedperfect
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am postponingprogressive
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are postponingprogressive
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is postponingprogressive
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have been postponingperfect progressive
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has been postponingperfect progressive
Past
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postponedsimple
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had postponedperfect
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was postponingprogressive
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were postponingprogressive
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had been postponingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of postpone
First recorded in 1490–1500; from Latin postpōnere “to put after, lay aside,” equivalent to post- post- + pōnere “to put”
Explanation
To postpone something is to put it off until later. You can postpone an appointment today and reschedule it for tomorrow. Anything you're putting for is being postponed: people postpone things they don't have time to do or just don't want to do. Since doctor and dental appointments are no fun, people postpone them a lot. You can postpone small things, like going to the store or watching a video. The government can postpone big things, like the passing of bills or the invasion of another country. People who procrastinate are constantly postponing. When you see the word postpone, think "Later!"
Vocabulary lists containing postpone
Anti-Antonyms: Words Without Opposites
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
"They will postpone it until conditions become really unliveable," she says.
From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026
"Delays in specimen collection, transportation and testing can postpone confirmation by days or weeks, which hinders the isolation of infected persons, contact tracing and the initiation of outbreak-control measures," Sullivan wrote.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 20, 2026
The latest bit of bad news was a report by Bloomberg that nuclear service provider Holtec decided to postpone its initial public offering that had been expected to price today.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026
It could also postpone the products and revenue intended to justify those investments.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 15, 2026
Usually High Blade Xenocrates did nothing but mediate and postpone discussions for a later date.
From "Scythe" by Neal Shusterman
Plus: Oura postpones IPO over market uncertainty; Goldman board discusses plan to name John Waldron next CEO; Nvidia adds $150 billion to buyback plan.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026
Plus, Trump postpones AI order, and ‘The Sound of Music’ is the secret to U.S.-China diplomacy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 22, 2026
The plan also postpones more complex negotiations over its nuclear programme, a major sticking point for Trump.
From Barron's ● Apr. 28, 2026
The young adult rom-com follows Avery Blackwell, a rising college freshman who postpones her plans to attend Columbia after a note from her late mother sends her on a scavenger hunt in England.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 5, 2025
It is not often that a man postpones to his seventy-sixth year, and then successfully executes, the crowning task of his life.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 13, Slice 8 "Hudson River" to "Hurstmonceaux" by Various
A summit between the UK and the EU was due to take place in the summer but was postponed after Sir Keir Starmer announced his resignation.
From BBC ● Oct. 12, 2026
Palestinian factions including Abbas's Fatah party and its longtime Islamist rival Hamas had agreed to recommend the elections be postponed at a meeting in Cairo on Wednesday, a source who was present told AFP.
From Barron's ● Oct. 10, 2026
It is different outside biotech, where companies including health-tech concern Oura have postponed IPOs because they couldn’t command the terms they were seeking.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026
The tax-exempt status also isn’t clear-cut because the payment is only postponed and each state has its own rules for fuel taxes.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 6, 2026
Over and over again, Smith postponed Seabiscuit’s workouts.
From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand
“It’s not fair to you to keep postponing the shows, and even though it breaks my heart, it’s best that we cancel everything now until I’m really ready to be back on stage again.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 9, 2026
But he warned against allowing the choice to become an excuse for postponing saving.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 2, 2026
Judge Dabney Friedrich cited "newly discovered evidence" and "evidence located in other countries" as the reason for postponing the trial.
From Barron's ● Aug. 25, 2026
Some demographers see these women as simply postponing pregnancy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 6, 2026
Yesterday Peter and I finally got around to having the talk we’ve been postponing for the last ten days.
From "The Diary of a Young Girl" by Anne Frank
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
