dilatory
Americanadjective
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tending to delay or procrastinate; slow; tardy.
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intended to cause delay, gain time, or defer decision.
a dilatory strategy.
adjective
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tending or inclined to delay or waste time
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intended or designed to waste time or defer action
Other Word Forms
- dilatorily adverb
- dilatoriness noun
- undilatorily adverb
- undilatory adjective
Etymology
Origin of dilatory
1250–1300; Middle English (< Anglo-French ) < Latin dīlātōrius, equivalent to dīlā-, suppletive stem of differre to postpone ( differ ) + -tōrius -tory 1
Explanation
Something dilatory creates a delay. Remember when your math teacher asked you to work out a problem on the board and you tried to get her talking about her favorite theorems instead? That was a dilatory tactic. The adjective dilatory comes from the Latin root word dilator, a noun that means "someone who puts off things" or "a procrastinator." If you are always late to appointments, people may accuse you of being dilatory, especially if they think you don't have a good excuse.
Vocabulary lists containing dilatory
Languor Management: Synonyms for "Lazy"
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It must have slipped my mind...
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What Was That Again? Words With Difficult-to-Remember Meanings
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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.
Public opinion has split between those who have taken the king to task for being dilatory and those who think he has played the situation correctly.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 5, 2026
There have always been those who found the place, with its pretentious airs, dilatory pacing and stultifying rules of order, a frustrating environment to work in, much less thrive.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 18, 2025
The BTP's review found that while no act or omission in the investigation was made maliciously, there was a "lack of professional inquisitiveness exacerbated by dilatory and lazy practices".
From BBC • Aug. 10, 2023
Gerry Adams, another key player in the 1998 talks as head of the political wing of the Irish Republican Army, said he would be "very, very dilatory about making changes to the Good Friday Agreement".
From Reuters • Apr. 3, 2023
The dilatory limousine came rolling up the drive.
From " The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald
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.
