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defer
1[ dih-fur ]
/ dɪˈfɜr /
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verb (used with object), de·ferred, de·fer·ring.
to put off (action, consideration, etc.) to a future time: The decision has been deferred by the board until next week.
to exempt temporarily from induction into military service.
verb (used without object), de·ferred, de·fer·ring.
to put off action; delay.
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Origin of defer
1synonym study for defer
1. 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. 3. procrastinate.
historical usage of defer
Defer “to put off, delay” comes from Middle English deferen, differren “to put off, delay, be different, differentiate, refer a matter for decision; defer to, show respect or deference to,” from Old French def(f)erer, dif(f)erer “to have different qualities, be different, be dissimilar,” from Latin differre “to carry away, carry in different directions, differ, postpone, adjourn.” Differre is composed of the prefix dif- (a variant of dis- used before f ) “apart, asunder” and the simple verb ferre “to carry, bear.”
Defer and differ were originally the same word, but spellings with def- for etymologically correct dif-, which first appeared in the 15th century, have become standard in part because of the sense “to put off, delay” (absent in differ ), in part because of the accent being on the root (second) syllable, and in part through association with delay .
The meaning “to exempt temporarily from military service” first appeared in 1941.
Defer and differ were originally the same word, but spellings with def- for etymologically correct dif-, which first appeared in the 15th century, have become standard in part because of the sense “to put off, delay” (absent in differ ), in part because of the accent being on the root (second) syllable, and in part through association with delay .
The meaning “to exempt temporarily from military service” first appeared in 1941.
OTHER WORDS FROM defer
de·fer·rer, nounWords nearby defer
Other definitions for defer (2 of 2)
defer2
[ dih-fur ]
/ dɪˈfɜr /
verb (used without object), de·ferred, de·fer·ring.
to yield respectfully in judgment or opinion (usually followed by to): We all defer to him in these matters.
verb (used with object), de·ferred, de·fer·ring.
to submit for decision; refer: We defer questions of this kind to the president.
OTHER WORDS FOR defer
Origin of defer
2historical usage of defer
Defer comes from Old French def(f)erer “to yield to, comply with,” from Latin dēferre “to carry, carry down, convey, report, inform, inform against, denounce.” Dēferre is a compound of the prefix and preposition dē-, dē, indicating privation, removal, and separation, and the simple verb ferre “to carry, bear” ( dēferre has no sense “to yield respectfully”). The sense “to yield respectfully, pay deference to,” which developed from the earlier sense “to submit for decision,” dates from the second half of the 17th century.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
How to use defer in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for defer (1 of 2)
defer1
/ (dɪˈfɜː) /
verb -fers, -ferring or -ferred
(tr) to delay or cause to be delayed until a future time; postpone
Derived forms of defer
deferrable or deferable, adjectivedeferrer, nounWord Origin for defer
C14: from Old French differer to be different, postpone; see differ
British Dictionary definitions for defer (2 of 2)
defer2
/ (dɪˈfɜː) /
verb -fers, -ferring or -ferred
(intr foll by to) to yield (to) or comply (with) the wishes or judgments of anotherI defer to your superior knowledge
Word Origin for defer
C15: from Latin dēferre, literally: to bear down, from de- + ferre to bear
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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