postponement

[pohst-pohn-muhnt, pohs-]

noun

1. the act of putting something off to a later time; deferral.

   Taking your sick or injured pet to the veterinarian should be prompt, as any postponement can lead to ongoing medical issues.

2. the act of placing a thing below something else in importance or after something else in sequence (now used most often in grammar).

   Historically, inheritance laws tended toward a postponement of the claims of female kin to those of male kin.

   In English, the end position in a sentence is normally reserved for the key point, so postponement of an element is a way of emphasizing it.

Other Word Forms

• nonpostponement noun
• self-postponement noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of postponement¹

postpone ( def. ) + -ment ( def. )

Example Sentences

Complicating the deliberations is the government shutdown, which has delayed the release of the September jobs report and could force postponement of September inflation data if it continues into next week.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The postponement of the elections in the three provinces - Raqqa, Hassakeh and Suweida - means the electoral colleges in only 50 out of 60 districts will be choosing representatives for about 120 seats on Sunday.

Read more on BBC

Chastain voiced her opposition to the postponement Wednesday on Instagram, writing that she and Apple were “not aligned on the decision to pause the release of The Savant.”

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Creating further problems between the two are the repeated postponements of elections.

Read more on BBC

Athletics' return to Tokyo means, fittingly, that the event in the Japanese capital bookends a five-year run of major championships - a situation caused by the pandemic and subsequent postponements.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• adjournment 
• freeze 
• halt 
• pause 
• respite 
• stay 
• suspension