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:
This will be followed by deliberate and thoughtful integration of AI tools and methods in years two and three.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 20, 2026
Peter Sparkes, chief executive of the RNLI, said recent events had "generated deliberate misinformation and a misunderstanding about the RNLI".
From BBC ● Sep. 19, 2026
Like Mr. McElwee, Mr. Wilson serves as his own deadpan narrator, though he’s often a little more deliberate a comedian.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026
The inquiry concluded that some of the mistakes in the investigation were negligent, while others were deliberate.
From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026
Had anyone paid real attention to her subject—and not the styling of her hair—he might have noticed that she was circling a monumental conceptual advance, albeit with deliberate caginess.
From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee
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
But during this process, as Cannon deliberates on the matter, the witnesses are apparently sweating this out and feeling immense pressure.
From Salon ● Mar. 27, 2024
Deciding what to do, Cinnamon deliberates with everyone — her husband, her best friend, her minister, the infant she names Bluebell and, of course, herself.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 12, 2023
This Consistory is in a proper Sense the Pope’s Council of State, wherein he deliberates secretly with the Cardinals on the most important Affairs of the Holy See.
The prosecution rested, and the jury deliberated for five hours.
From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026
The groundstaff partially removed the covers while officials deliberated.
From BBC ● Aug. 29, 2026
Nonetheless, a jury deliberated for five days and ultimately found Miles guilty.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 22, 2026
After a three-week trial in June, the jury in Los Angeles deliberated for two days before declaring itself deadlocked on the original charges.
From Barron's ● Aug. 19, 2026
I deliberated where I stood, wanting to return to him badly, but afraid I might have morning breath.
From "Twilight" by Stephenie Meyer
The jury, made up of nine women and three men, spent six days deliberating the case and twice sent notes to the judge indicating they could not reach a unanimous verdict.
From Slate ● Sep. 4, 2026
Jurors told the judge twice before that they were unable to reach a verdict, but were instructed to keep deliberating.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026
The Plymouth, Massachusetts, jury has been deliberating since Thursday over whether Clancy is criminally responsible for killing her children.
From BBC ● Sep. 2, 2026
The jury, made up of nine women and three men, began deliberating last week after hearing weeks of testimony from dozens of witnesses.
From BBC ● Sep. 1, 2026
Jason had to stop deliberating and take what he wanted.
From "Blood of Olympus" by Rick Riordan
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.
