deferential

[def-uh-ren-shuhl]

adjective

1. showing deference; deferent; respectful.

   Synonyms: reverential, obedient, dutiful, regardful, courteous

deferential

/ ˌdɛfəˈrɛnʃəl /

adjective

1. marked by or showing deference or respect; respectful

Other Word Forms

• deferentially adverb
• nondeferential adjective
• nondeferentially adverb
• overdeferential adjective
• overdeferentially adverb
• undeferential adjective
• undeferentially adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of deferential¹

1815–25; after deference, by analogy with such pairs as residence: residential

Example Sentences

California’s challenge to those justifications has so far floundered in court, with the 9th Circuit finding in June that judges must be “highly deferential” to the president’s interpretation of facts on the ground.

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But it’s worth stressing the takeaway: Redford was always deferential to his leading women, all of whom bloomed and ached in his absence.

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And it has been deferential to his whims, but the Republican Party losing control of the House and Senate would be a major blow to his agenda.

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“This deferential standard of review leaves no basis for faulting the Commission’s work,” the appeals court had concluded then in its opinion.

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“Nonetheless, we are persuaded that, under longstanding precedent interpreting the statutory predecessor ... our review of that decision must be highly deferential.”

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Related Words

• civil 
• courteous 
• obedient 
• polite 
• reverential 
• submissive