procrastination

[ proh-kras-tuh-ney-shuhn, pruh‑ ]

noun

1. the act or habit of procrastinating, or putting off or delaying, especially something requiring immediate attention:

   She was smart, but her constant procrastination led her to be late with almost every assignment.

Word History and Origins

Origin of procrastination¹

First recorded in 1540–50; from Latin prōcrāstinātiōn-, stem of prōcrāstinātiō “a putting off until tomorrow,” equivalent to prōcrāstināt(us), past participle of prōcrāstināre “to put off until tomorrow” + -iō -ion ( def ); procrastinate ( def )

Example Sentences

We have a limited number of Startup Exhibitor Packages available, and procrastination is not your friend.

From TechCrunch

Lots of people engage in “revenge bedtime procrastination,” which describes a tendency to push off sleep to make time for personal activities.

From Washington Post

Consistently rewarding earliness, he said, could help curb procrastination.

From Washington Post

How to overcome procrastination By overcoming your tendency to stall, then, you can improve your mental and physical well-being.

From Washington Post

Kick procrastination to the curb and keep more money in your wallet.

From TechCrunch

Procrastination is certainly a problem for many at work and school.

From The Daily Beast

“Bedtime procrastination may be a relatively modern phenomenon,” explained Kroese.

From The Daily Beast

“Stop procrastinating” focuses your brain on procrastination.

From The Daily Beast

Eder Campuzano: Doing the laundry you put off for two weeks for free is like winning the World Series of procrastination.

From The Daily Beast

Why both sides see procrastination now as the path to getting their way later, after Election Day.

From The Daily Beast

The Daemon of procrastination has at length yielded to the Genius of Friendship, assisted indeed by the powers of fear and shame.

From Project Gutenberg

The Directors, after much procrastination, drew up and submitted their case.

From Project Gutenberg

But procrastination is a South American characteristic, and the affair drifted on until, in 1888, a Convention was made.

From Project Gutenberg

And Philip, never quite ready for any important decision, praised his lieutenant's delay, and inculcated further procrastination.

From Project Gutenberg

Procrastination was a thief that had never succeeded in wresting much time from Hepworth.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• doubt
• equivocation
• hesitancy
• indecision
• misgiving
• mistrust
• pause
• qualm
• reluctance
• skepticism
• unwillingness
• vacillation