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Delay for Dummies

verb

pronunciation: dɪ'leɪ

What does Delay really mean?

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Hey there! Okay, so, let's talk about the word "delay." Basically, when we talk about a delay, we mean that something is being held back or pushed back in time. It's like when you plan to go somewhere, but then something comes up and you have to wait before you can go. That's a delay.

One way to think about it is like when you're waiting for a bus. If the bus is supposed to come at 3:00, but it's late and doesn't arrive until 3:15, that's a delay. The bus was held back, and you had to wait longer than you expected.

So, that's one definition of delay - when something doesn't happen as quickly as it's supposed to. But there's another way to think about delay too. Sometimes, we use the word "delay" to talk about purposely holding something off or putting it off until later. Like if you have a project due, and you decide to delay starting it until tomorrow, that's a different kind of delay. It's a choice to put something off for a little while.

So, all in all, delay can mean a couple of different things - either something is being held back and happening later than planned, or it's a choice to put off doing something for a little while. Does that make sense? Let me know if you have any questions about it!

Revised and Fact checked by Daniel Taylor on 2023-11-09 18:34:49

Delay In a sentece

Learn how to use Delay inside a sentece

  • I missed my bus so there was a delay in getting to school.
  • The construction work caused a delay in the traffic.
  • The heavy snowstorm led to a delay in the delivery of the packages.
  • The repair work on the elevator caused a delay in going up to the fifth floor.
  • The slow internet connection resulted in a delay in finishing my homework.

Delay Synonyms

Words that can be interchanged for the original word in the same context.

check check detain detain detain detain hold hold hold up hold up holdup holdup postponement postponement retard retard stay stay time lag time lag wait wait

Delay Antonyms

Words that have the opposite context of the original word.

rush rush

Delay Hypernyms

Words that are more generic than the original word.

alter alter break break change change check check decelerate decelerate hold back hold back hold off hold off inactivity inactivity intermission intermission interruption interruption modify modify pause pause retard retard retard retard slow slow slow down slow down slow up slow up suspension suspension wait wait

Delay Hyponyms

Words that are more specific than the original word.

break break buy time buy time catch catch cunctation cunctation dalliance dalliance dampen dampen dawdling dawdling defer defer deferment deferment deferral deferral demurrage demurrage detain detain dilly-dally dilly-dally dillydally dillydally disruption disruption drag one's feet drag one's feet drag one's heels drag one's heels extension extension filibuster filibuster forbearance forbearance gap gap hesitate hesitate hold over hold over interruption interruption lag lag lingering lingering moratorium moratorium pause pause postpone postpone postponement postponement procrastinate procrastinate procrastination procrastination prorogue prorogue put off put off put over put over remit remit retardation retardation retardation retardation set back set back shelve shelve shillyshally shillyshally shillyshally shillyshally slowdown slowdown stall stall stall stall stay stay stonewall stonewall table table tarriance tarriance trifling trifling