adjourn
Americanverb (used with object)
-
adjourns,
present (3rd person singular)
-
adjourned,
past participle, past
-
adjourning
present participle
-
to suspend the meeting of (a club, legislature, committee, etc.) to a future time, another place, or indefinitely.
At this point in the trial, the judge adjourned the court session so the defense could access and review the test results.
-
to defer or postpone to a later time.
Too many board members would have been absent, so the chair adjourned the meeting to next Monday.
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to defer or postpone (a matter) to a future meeting of the same body, or to a future time, specified or not specified.
We will adjourn discussion of point 5.2 to our April meeting.
verb (used without object)
-
adjourns,
present (3rd person singular)
-
adjourned,
past participle, past
-
adjourning
present participle
-
to postpone, suspend, or transfer proceedings.
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to go to another place.
After dinner the ladies adjourned to the parlor.
verb
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(intr) (of a court, etc) to close at the end of a session
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to postpone or be postponed, esp temporarily or to another place
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(tr) to put off (a problem, discussion, etc) for later consideration; defer
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informal (intr)
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to move elsewhere
let's adjourn to the kitchen
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to stop work
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Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
adjournsimple
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adjournssimple
-
have adjournedperfect
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has adjournedperfect
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am adjourningprogressive
-
are adjourningprogressive
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is adjourningprogressive
-
have been adjourningperfect progressive
-
has been adjourningperfect progressive
Past
-
adjournedsimple
-
had adjournedperfect
-
was adjourningprogressive
-
were adjourningprogressive
-
had been adjourningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of adjourn
1300–50; Middle English ajo ( u ) rnen < Middle French ajo ( u ) rner, equivalent to a- ad- + jorn- < Latin diurnus daily; see journal, journey
Explanation
To adjourn is to close a session of something, like at court. People also adjourn when they go to bed. When something is adjourned, it's over. This word comes up most often in court. Lawyers and citizens don't have the power to adjourn — to call a recess in the proceedings. Only a judge can adjourn the court. This can also be used in any situation where someone is withdrawing from somewhere, or retiring for awhile. "I must adjourn!" is a fancy way of saying "I'm out of here! I need to get some sleep. See you tomorrow."
Vocabulary lists containing adjourn
The Constitution of the United States
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Vocabulary from The Articles of Confederation
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Vocabulary from the Constitution of the United States
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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:
Both houses will adjourn for summer recess, the House on July 24 and the Senate on Aug. 10.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 6, 2026
Before we adjourn, a final question: What will next year’s healthcare roundtable focus on?
From Barron's ● Sep. 26, 2025
Gaetz resigned in the current session of Congress, which does not officially adjourn until Jan. 2, 2025.
From Salon ● Nov. 22, 2024
On Monday, the inquest is expected to hear submissions on a request by Paterson to adjourn proceedings.
From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2024
I resolved that if he acted in that finger-wagging fashion with me I would have to inform him that I found such behavior unacceptable, and I would then stand up and adjourn the meeting.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
According to the Associated Press, the deal outlines a plan for the Senate to vote to confirm 13 more district court judges before the upper chamber adjourns in December.
From Salon ● Nov. 22, 2024
Laws passed in a special session and signed by the governor typically take affect 90 days after the session adjourns.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 7, 2024
Further votes affirming L.G.B.T.Q. clergy and churchgoers are expected before the meeting adjourns on Friday.
From New York Times ● May 1, 2024
The legislation that moved the state’s primary will not take effect until 90 days after the Legislature adjourns.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 13, 2023
As Coin adjourns the meeting, Haymitch asks her if he can speak to me privately.
From "Mockingjay" by Suzanne Collins
The case was adjourned until the end of August when the woman is due to be sentenced.
From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026
The members adjourned without a vote to continue negotiations.
From Barron's ● Aug. 5, 2026
Parliament was adjourned on Tuesday after the opposition benches demanded a discussion on the alleged "brutality unleashed on students".
From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026
The long-running Noah Donohoe inquest has been adjourned until later this year.
From BBC ● Jul. 3, 2026
The study was too close to the children’s bedrooms for a late-night talk, so the headmistress and I adjourned to a little greenhouse that edged the woods.
From "Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children" by Ransom Riggs
The countries that voted in favour of adjourning the talks included Russia, Saudi Arabia and the US.
From BBC ● Oct. 17, 2025
With parliament adjourning for the holidays on Tuesday, Trudeau will not be facing the threat of another confidence motion until at least late January.
From BBC ● Dec. 17, 2024
"By adjourning the sentencing until after that election... the Court would reduce, even if not eliminate, issues regarding the integrity of any future proceedings," reads the Aug. 14 letter.
From Salon ● Aug. 15, 2024
Before adjourning the convention Saturday, chair Dave Owen announced that 686 delegates representing more than 35 counties in Iowa were in attendance, figures that could not immediately be verified.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 13, 2024
Before adjourning, the chairman encouraged her to invite “the ladies of the land” to form their own anti-slavery societies.
From "Votes for Women!" by Winifred Conkling
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.
