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.

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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

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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

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defer ² British  

/ dɪˈfɜː /

verb

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

   I defer to your superior knowledge

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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

Handler appeared to defer to the soloists, while the trio looked to encourage her.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 27, 2026

They would also be allowed to defer payment until they are able to monetize their startup stake.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026

In a new filing on Monday night, the Manhattan district attorney's office said it would "defer to the court's judgement" on courtroom access.

From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2026

Also known by its rather unsubtle acronym, CRUSH, this initiative is taking unprecedented steps to withhold and defer funds in response to suspected fraud.

From Salon ● Aug. 5, 2026

Your arguments will tend to prosper if they are founded on the common assumptions of your audience—or, in special cases, if the audience is minded to defer to your authority.

From "Words Like Loaded Pistols" by Sam Leith

That and other changes sought by the owners, including a ban on deferred contract payments, would have barred contracts such as Shohei Ohtani’s and Juan Soto’s, which have huge deferred balances.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026

And your $75,000 paper loss does not automatically reduce your taxable gain, because you already have deferred gains from the previous 1031 exchange.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 17, 2026

The company’s bread-and-butter gaming business remained a steady source of revenue in the second quarter, with domestic games revenue rising 17% thanks to deferred gross receipts from the previous quarter.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026

The decline of PIKs is partly due to fewer deals being made for software firms like Medallia, where deferred interest is more common.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026

When Madison wrote or spoke on constitutional questions, Jefferson always deferred.

From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis

But a spoof is under no obligation to turn that one joke into a full narrative as it does by deferring to a younger cast, and only checking in with the franchise’s original players occasionally.

From Salon ● Jun. 11, 2026

Motions to dismiss charges in the case paint some of the officers as rookies deferring to their superiors.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 7, 2026

From what I understand, a distribution is mandatory; deferring receipt does not exempt one from the requirement.

From MarketWatch ● Mar. 23, 2026

If it distributes the asset, beneficiaries can wait to sell it, deferring any tax bills.

From Barron's ● Feb. 28, 2026

Once she starts deferring to me, I’ll know that I’ve slipped into the virtual driver’s seat, regardless of who’s actually driving.

From "Dry" by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman

Related Words

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