delayverb
uk/dɪˈleɪ/us/dɪˈleɪ/A2 [ I or T ] to make something happen at a later time than originally planned or expected:
My plane was delayed by an hour.
Heavy snow delayed the start of the game.
[ + -ing verb ] I think we should delay deciding about this until next year.
B1 [ T ] to cause someone or something to be slow or late:
I was delayed by traffic.
[ I ] to not act quickly or immediately:
If you delay now, the opportunity might be lost.
More examples
- The new treatment can delay the onset of the disease by several years.
- This decision may delay the process of European unification.
- The legal to-ings and fro-ings could delay the start of the trial for up to six months.
- The project has been delayed by innumerable problems.
- They've just announced on the PA that our flight's been delayed.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Delaying and wasting time
- ado
- be on ice idiom
- bugger
- bugger about
- bugger sb about
- carry
- hold
- hold sb/sth back
- hold sb/sth up
- hold up
- ice
- kick
- kick the can down the road idiom
- push
- retardation
- set sth/sb back
- shelve
- sit
- sit on sth
- spin your wheels idiom
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delaynoun [ C or U ]
uk/dɪˈleɪ/us/dɪˈleɪ/A2 the situation in which you have to wait longer than expected for something to happen, or the time that you have to wait:
This situation needs to be tackled without delay.
Long delays are predicted on the motorway because of the accident.
There has been a delay in the book's publication.
More examples
- We had to endure a nine-hour delay at the airport.
- Trains may be subject to delay on the northern line - we apologize for any inconvenience caused.
- Please settle your account without further delay.
- There are delays on the M4 because of roadworks.
- We should arrive at ten o'clock, as long as there are no unexpected delays.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Delaying and wasting time
- ado
- be on ice idiom
- bugger
- bugger about
- bugger sb about
- carry
- hold
- hold sb/sth back
- hold sb/sth up
- hold up
- ice
- kick
- kick the can down the road idiom
- push
- retardation
- set sth/sb back
- shelve
- sit
- sit on sth
- spin your wheels idiom
See more results »