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:
Announcing that counter terror police were involved in the investigation, the prime minister said: "This wasn't an accident. There was a deliberate act, it would appear."
From BBC ● Oct. 19, 2026
The desire to make these heroines feel contemporary is deliberate.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026
But with their capabilities supplemented by human teleoperators, Tau’s robots climbed with deliberate accuracy, albeit a little slowly.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026
I’m happy to hear you say that because that was very deliberate.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026
The train began to slow down as it approached the station, and Moss sat down in the seat nearest the door, taking slow, deliberate breaths.
From "Anger Is a Gift" by Mark Oshiro
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
This one-year mark comes on the heels of reported upticks in crimes against Jewish and Palestinian communities and as the state Legislature deliberates a reparations package that aims to remedy the legacy of slavery.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 20, 2024
While the jury deliberates Majors' fate, the actor faces up to a year in jail if he is convicted of all four charges.
From Salon ● Dec. 14, 2023
This prevents, for the time being, any action, and the youth deliberates between the two possible lines of conduct.
From Ontario Normal School Manuals: Science of Education by Ontario. Ministry of Education
Some bankers at JPMorgan Chase and Citigroup were canceling meetings, while personnel around JPMorgan’s Jamie Dimon and Citi’s Jane Fraser deliberated over whether the chief executives should attend.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 19, 2026
The verdict in the death of Wilver Blanco came after jurors deliberated for a little more than four hours over two days.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 24, 2026
The prosecution rested, and the jury deliberated for five hours.
From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026
The grim case led to a series of dramatic twists and turns as the jury deliberated for nearly 40 hours over seven days to determine Clancy's fate.
From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026
I pursed my lips, deliberated, then shook my head with a tight grin.
From "Twilight" by Stephenie Meyer
Personnel around JPMorgan’s Jamie Dimon and Citi’s Jane Fraser are actively deliberating whether to go but are concerned about the risks, some of the people said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 18, 2026
The jury is expected to begin deliberating Friday morning.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
After the jury spent nearly 40 hours deliberating, the judge declared a mistrial on Friday afternoon.
From Slate ● Sep. 4, 2026
Despite the enormous media footprint, jurors deliberating the case are barred from watching or reading coverage of the trial.
From BBC ● Sep. 2, 2026
In honesty, he would have preferred to go into Father Olufemi’s study himself to get the journal, but some quick deliberating had put an end to that idea.
From "Beasts of Prey" by Ayana Gray
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
