verb
1.To put off until a later time: adjourn, defer, hold off, hold up, postpone, remit, shelve, stay, suspend, table, waive. Informal wait. Idioms: put on ice. See do/not do.
2.To cause to be later or slower than expected or desired: detain, hang up, hold up, lag, retard, set back, slow (down or up), stall. See help/harm/harmless, time.
3.To go or move slowly so that progress is hindered: dally, dawdle, dilly-dally, drag, lag, linger, loiter, poke, procrastinate, tarry, trail. Idioms: drag one's feet or heels, mark time, take one's time. See fast/slow/velocity.
noun
1.The act of putting off or the condition of being put off: adjournment, deferment, deferral, postponement, stay, suspension, waiver. See time.
2.The condition or fact of being made late or slow: detainment, holdup, lag, retardation. See help/harm/harmless, time.
This summer, my children will learn a new and exciting word: "delay." We will utter that word so frequently, that even Gabriel will have it imprinted in his little infant mind. And of the above applications of the word, I assure you that we will be working outside of the "dawdle," "dilly-dally," and "procrastinate" frame of meaning. That would indicate a lack of desire to be moved into our beautiful new home and life before winter. No. Instead, any delay that takes place will be of the "hold-up,""detainment," or "stall" kind. And it will be because the reigns of
forward momentum will be in the hands of someone other than us. This month, the reigns have been in the hands of one engineer. And he seems to be a Sunday driver.
The good news is that this particular engineer sees nothing wrong with our plans, and is willing to simply draft and sign a letter saying as much. The letter in question, however, has been a long time coming. We are still waiting.
So while we wait, let's learn how to say "delay" in as many languages as we can:
Nederlands (Dutch)
uitstellen, vertragen, ophouden, talmen, op zich laten wachten, tijd rekken/winnen, uitstel, vertraging
Français (French)
différer, retarder, ralentir, remettre, tarder, remise, délai, retard, blocage
Deutsch (German)
v. - verschieben, verzögern, aufhalten, auf sich warten lassen
n. - Verzögerung, Verspätung
Ελληνική (Greek)
v. καθυστερώ, αργοπορώ, βραδύνω, παρελκύω, αναστέλλω, παρακωλύω n. καθυστέρηση, αργοπορία, παρέλκυση, χρονοτριβή
Italiano (Italian)
rimandare, ritardare, trattenere, tardare, rinvio, ostacolo
Português (Portuguese)
v. - atrasar, adiar, demorar
n. - atraso (m), adiamento (m)
Русский (Russian)
откладывать, задерживать, отсрочка, задержка
Español (Spanish)
v. tr. - aplazar, demorar, retrasar, retardar, estorbar, entretener, tardar, posponer, impedir
v. intr. - estorbar, entretener, tardar, atrasarse
n. - demora, dilación, retraso
Svenska (Swedish)
v. - försena, skjuta upp, uppehålla, hindra
n. - dröjsmål, försening
中国话 (Simplified Chinese)
v. tr. - 延缓, 耽搁, 使延期, 延误
v. intr. - 拖延, 耽搁
n. - 耽搁, 迟滞
中國話 (Traditional Chinese)
v. tr. - 延緩, 耽擱, 使延期, 延誤
v. intr. - 拖延, 耽擱
n. - 耽擱, 遲滯
日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 遅れ, 延期
v. - 遅らせる, 延期する, ぐずぐずする
العربيه (Arabic)
(فعل) يتأخر, يؤخر, يؤجل (الاسم) تأخير, تأخر, تأجيل
עברית (Hebrew)
v. tr. - עיכב, דחה
v. intr. - השתהה
n. - השהיה, שהייה, עיכוב, דחייה
