deliberate
Americanadjective
-
carefully weighed or considered; studied; intentional.
a deliberate lie.
- Antonyms:
- accidental
-
characterized by deliberation or cautious consideration; careful or slow in deciding.
Moving away from the city and all its advantages required a deliberate decision.
- Synonyms:
- cautious, circumspect, thoughtful, methodical
- Antonyms:
- rash, precipitate, impulsive
-
leisurely and steady in movement or action; slow and even; unhurried.
moving with a deliberate step.
verb (used with object)
-
deliberates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
deliberated,
past participle, past
-
deliberating
present participle
verb (used without object)
-
deliberates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
deliberated,
past participle, past
-
deliberating
present participle
adjective
-
carefully thought out in advance; planned; studied; intentional
a deliberate insult
-
careful or unhurried in speech or action
a deliberate pace
verb
Synonym Usage
Deliberate, intentional, premeditated, voluntary refer to something not happening by chance. Deliberate is applied to what is done not hastily but with full realization of what one is doing: a deliberate attempt to evade justice. Intentional is applied to what is definitely intended or done on purpose: an intentional omission. Premeditated is applied to what has been planned in advance: a premeditated crime. Voluntary is applied to what is done by a definite exercise of the will and not because of outward pressures: a voluntary enlistment. See slow.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
deliberatenessnoun
-
deliberatornoun
-
nondeliberatenessnoun
-
overdeliberatenessnoun
-
undeliberatenessnoun
-
overdeliberateverb
-
redeliberateverb
-
predeliberateverb (used with object)
-
nondeliberateadjective
-
overdeliberateadjective
-
predeliberateadjective
-
quasi-deliberateadjective
-
undeliberateadjective
-
undeliberatingadjective
-
well-deliberatedadjective
-
deliberatelyadverb
-
undeliberatinglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
deliberatesimple
-
deliberatessimple
-
have deliberatedperfect
-
has deliberatedperfect
-
am deliberatingprogressive
-
are deliberatingprogressive
-
is deliberatingprogressive
-
have been deliberatingperfect progressive
-
has been deliberatingperfect progressive
Past
-
deliberatedsimple
-
had deliberatedperfect
-
was deliberatingprogressive
-
were deliberatingprogressive
-
had been deliberatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of deliberate
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin dēlīberātus (past participle of dēlīberāre “to consider”), equivalent to dē- “from, away from” + līber(āre) “to balance, weigh” (derivative of lībra “balance, scales”) + -ātus past participle suffix; see de-, -ate 1
Explanation
To deliberate means to carefully think or talk something through — it also means slow and measured, the pace of this kind of careful decision making. If you chose deliberately, you make a very conscious, well-thought-through choice. The verb deliberate ends with an "ate" sound — at the end of a trial, after the evidence is presented, the twelve members of a jury retreat to a room to deliberate, i.e., talk through the trial and come to a verdict. The adjective deliberate ends with an "it" sound. If you walk with a deliberate pace, you're slow and steady.
Vocabulary lists containing deliberate
The Crucible
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"Of Mice and Men"
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Think Tank: Thought-Provoking Vocabulary
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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:
Over that period, the laboratory received 274 samples connected to 201 suspected cases of either deliberate or accidental poisoning across the UK, Ireland, and Gibraltar.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 15, 2026
Olgulului's Papatiti also dismissed the theory of deliberate poisoning.
From Barron's ● Aug. 13, 2026
“There was a deliberate digital campaign, spreading via WhatsApp and Facebook groups, that coordinated meeting points and crossing instructions,” said Ruslan Trad, a nonresident fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 9, 2026
“It’s very deliberate to call this a restoration and not a renovation,” Reyes said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026
I'm so consumed by the deliberate pencil marks that I don't notice my phone is ringing until Hiroshi taps me on the shoulder and makes me jump.
From "Starfish" by Akemi Dawn Bowman
And so, I think there has to be both a change to the way the Senate deliberates.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 7, 2026
The Fed is considering this scenario as it deliberates the future of monetary policy.
From Barron's ● Feb. 24, 2026
This one-year mark comes on the heels of reported upticks in crimes against Jewish and Palestinian communities and as the state Legislature deliberates a reparations package that aims to remedy the legacy of slavery.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 20, 2024
Individual states have taken actions intending to stop online danger for children as Congress deliberates.
From Washington Times ● Jun. 30, 2023
He was deliberating; and I wish you to understand that in a case like this "the child that deliberates is lost."
From Little Grandfather by Sophie May
On Tuesday, the jury deliberated for more than four hours before finding Khan guilty, but cleared Chowdhury.
From BBC ● Jul. 21, 2026
The jury in 77-year-old George Gibney's deliberated for more than seven hours before returning a to give its verdict's on Monday afternoon.
From BBC ● Jul. 6, 2026
“Given the length of this trial, they haven’t deliberated for an inordinate amount of time at this point,” Williams argued.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 26, 2026
Congress had deliberated for weeks before a majority in favor of independence became a unanimous vote, setting the stage for the next step.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 22, 2026
He asked them how long they had deliberated before they bought what they bought.
From "Blink" by Malcolm Gladwell
Now, was Warsh deliberating targeting the long end of the curve with the statement and ensuing press conference?
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 3, 2026
PdVSA recently circulated among industry participants a list of two dozen production-sharing agreements it was deliberating with foreign oil companies, according to a person close to the situation.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026
He also acknowledged that the jury was "exhausted" after deliberating from early Thursday morning, adding that "it would be totally wrong" to expect them to continue deliberations in the hours ahead.
From BBC ● Jul. 3, 2026
Jurors first indicated that they were at an impasse on Thursday afternoon, after deliberating for more than 13 hours.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 26, 2026
In honesty, he would have preferred to go into Father Olufemi’s study himself to get the journal, but some quick deliberating had put an end to that idea.
From "Beasts of Prey" by Ayana Gray
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.
