deferment
Americannoun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of deferment
Explanation
A deferment delays something until a future time. If you want to wait a few years before paying off a loan, you need to ask for a deferment. Deferment is an official word for "I'll do that later!" College students who owe a lot of money can apply for deferments that give them more time to pay back their loans. Students accepted to colleges can sometimes get a deferment that allows them to do something else first (like serve in the military), and then attend the college later. This is usually used in formal contexts — good luck getting a deferment for your chores.
Vocabulary lists containing deferment
The Things They Carried
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Memorial Day: Words of Respect and Remembrance
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Boots on the Ground: America's War in Vietnam
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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:
The new deferment program will allow eligible homeowners to delay property taxes until June 30, 2030 — it does not, however, apply to taxes that were due and paid this year.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 9, 2026
In refinancing, your husband would lose a raft of federal protections and flexible deferment and forbearance options.
From MarketWatch ● May 15, 2026
It’s the reason so many student-loan borrowers find themselves trapped in cycles of deferment, forbearance or minimum payments that allow balances to balloon rather than shrink.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2025
If necessary, you can also look into deferment and forbearance options.
From Salon ● May 3, 2025
“You know how many guys would love to have a student deferment? And you’re just throwing it away.”
From "It All Comes Down to This" by Karen English
The marriage and children the couple soon produced allowed Cheney to obtain draft deferments while pursuing graduate studies.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 4, 2025
With a Direct Subsidized Loan, the federal government pays the interest while the student is enrolled at least half-time, then during the six-month grace period after leaving school and during any approved deferments.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 31, 2025
In South Korea, all able-bodied men are required to serve 18 months of military service, although rare exceptions are made - and deferments are sometimes granted.
From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2025
Juan Soto signed a 15-year, $765-million contract with the New York Mets before the 2025 season that does not include deferments.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 1, 2025
One year, they say, during the Vietnam War, Morrie gave all his male students A’s to help them keep their student deferments.
From "Tuesdays with Morrie" by Mitch Albom
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.
