deliberate

1 of 2

verb

de·​lib·​er·​ate di-ˈli-bə-ˌrāt 

deliberated; deliberating

intransitive verb

: to think about or discuss issues and decisions carefully

The jury deliberated for several days before reaching a verdict.

transitive verb

: to think about deliberately and often with formal discussion before reaching a decision

deliberate the question

was deliberating whether or not to accept the offer

deliberate

2 of 2

adjective

de·​lib·​er·​ate di-ˈli-bə-rət 

-ˈlib-rət

1

: characterized by or resulting from careful and thorough consideration

a deliberate decision

Ms. Barker herself has said that the decision to write about the war was a deliberate response to patronizing reviews of her working-class settings …

—Claudia Roth Pierpont

2

: characterized by awareness of the consequences

a deliberate exaggeration

a deliberate act of protest

3

: slow, unhurried, and steady as though allowing time for decision on each individual action involved

The jeweler worked at a deliberate pace.

deliberateness noun

Synonyms

Verb

• chew over
• cogitate
• consider
• contemplate
• debate
• entertain
• eye
• kick around
• meditate
• mull (over)
• perpend
• ponder
• pore (over)
• question
• revolve
• ruminate
• study
• think (about or over)
• turn
• weigh
• wrestle (with)

Adjective

• advised
• calculated
• considered
• knowing
• measured
• reasoned
• studied
• thoughtful
• thought-out
• weighed

Choose the Right Synonym for deliberate

Verb

think, cogitate, reflect, reason, speculate, deliberate mean to use one's powers of conception, judgment, or inference.

think is general and may apply to any mental activity, but used alone often suggests attainment of clear ideas or conclusions.

teaches students how to think

cogitate implies deep or intent thinking.

cogitated on the mysteries of nature

reflect suggests unhurried consideration of something recalled to the mind.

reflecting on fifty years of married life

reason stresses consecutive logical thinking.

able to reason brilliantly in debate

speculate implies reasoning about things theoretical or problematic.

speculated on the fate of the lost explorers

deliberate suggests slow or careful reasoning before forming an opinion or reaching a conclusion or decision.

the jury deliberated for five hours

Adjective

voluntary, intentional, deliberate, willing mean done or brought about of one's own will.

voluntary implies freedom and spontaneity of choice or action without external compulsion.

a voluntary confession

intentional stresses an awareness of an end to be achieved.

the intentional concealment of vital information

deliberate implies full consciousness of the nature of one's act and its consequences.

deliberate acts of sabotage

willing implies a readiness and eagerness to accede to or anticipate the wishes of another.

willing obedience

Examples of deliberate in a Sentence

Verb

The jury deliberated for two days before reaching a verdict.

They will deliberate the question.

Adjective

She spoke in a clear, deliberate manner.

He advocates a slow and deliberate approach to the problem.

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

The 12 members of the jury deliberated for 1 hour and 47 minutes, according to the CourtTV deliberation clock, before being released for the weekend. —Flint McColgan, Boston Herald, 13 June 2025

This will be the second time a jury deliberates over Read’s fate, after her first trial last year ended in a hung jury. —Karissa Waddick, USA Today, 12 June 2025

Adjective

Without deliberate human judgment, AI will only amplify hustle habits that keep us busy with everything, rather than prioritizing the few things that truly matter. —Melissa Daimler, Forbes.com, 17 June 2025

Instead, the change has occurred through the deliberate erosion of fundamental norms related to belonging and through the weaponization of once neutral institutions. —Ashley J. Tellis, Foreign Affairs, 17 June 2025

Word History

Etymology

Adjective and Verb

Middle English, from Latin deliberatus, past participle of deliberare to consider carefully, perhaps alteration of *delibrare, from de- + libra scale, pound

First Known Use

Verb

1536, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Adjective

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

deliberate

1 of 2 verb

de·​lib·​er·​ate di-ˈlib-ə-ˌrāt 

deliberated; deliberating

: to think about carefully : consider problems and decisions carefully

deliberate before answering

deliberate

2 of 2 adjective

de·​lib·​er·​ate di-ˈlib-(ə-)rət 

1

: decided on as a result of careful thought : carefully considered

a deliberate judgment

2

: done or said on purpose

a deliberate lie

3

: considering facts and arguments carefully : careful and slow in deciding

a deliberate speaker

4

: slow in action : not hurried

deliberate movements

deliberately adverb

deliberateness noun

Etymology

Verb

from Latin deliberatus, past participle of deliberare "to weigh in the mind," derived from de- "from, away" and libra "scale, pound" — related to equilibrium, libra

Word Origin

To weigh a decision is to think about it carefully, comparing one fact or idea with another as if by balancing them on a scale. The notion that slow and careful thought is like using a scale has given us the word deliberate. Deliberate can be traced back to the Latin verb deliberare, meaning "to weigh in the mind." The core of this word is the noun libra, meaning "a scale." A deliberate decision, therefore, is one that has been carefully weighed.

Legal Definition

deliberate

1 of 2 verb

de·​lib·​er·​ate di-ˈli-bə-ˌrāt 

deliberated; deliberating

intransitive verb

: to think about and weigh or discuss issues and decisions carefully

the jury retired to deliberate

transitive verb

: to think about or evaluate

deliberate

2 of 2 adjective

de·​lib·​er·​ate di-ˈli-bə-rət 

1

: characterized by or resulting from careful consideration

especially : characterized by or resulting from evaluation done in a cool state of blood and with a fixed purpose

deliberate murder

compare premeditated

2

: characterized by an understanding of the nature of a thing or act and its consequences

deliberate falsehoods

deliberately adverb

deliberateness noun