as in respectful
marked by or showing proper regard for another's higher status
the man had the deferential attitude of someone who had been a servant his entire life
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Recent Examples of deferential
Small in scale, devoid of ostentation, and otherwise deferential to Carmel’s forest character—Dyar Architecture’s Carmelo connects the dots between Carmel-by-the-Sea’s architectural past and present.
—
Richard Olsen, Forbes.com, 17 Jan. 2026
But under that deferential standard, the District Court’s ‘plausible’ (actually, quite careful) factfinding must survive.
—Jack Birle, The Washington Examiner, 1 Jan. 2026
The prospect of serving His Excellency and Madam Excellency fills me with deferential joy.
—Literary Hub, 5 Dec. 2025
That expectation means that girls frequently struggle to balance aggressive competitiveness with norms of deferential femininity, a double standard boys don’t encounter.
—Soraya Chemaly, Time, 24 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for deferential
Richard Olsen, Forbes.com, 17 Jan. 2026
But under that deferential standard, the District Court’s ‘plausible’ (actually, quite careful) factfinding must survive.
—Jack Birle, The Washington Examiner, 1 Jan. 2026
The prospect of serving His Excellency and Madam Excellency fills me with deferential joy.
—Literary Hub, 5 Dec. 2025
That expectation means that girls frequently struggle to balance aggressive competitiveness with norms of deferential femininity, a double standard boys don’t encounter.
—Soraya Chemaly, Time, 24 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for deferential
Recent Examples of Synonyms for deferential
Adjective
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Now, association with its past is intended to be a respectful reflection of its history.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
24 Feb. 2026
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And the respectful piece was huge.—
Tad Friend,
New Yorker,
23 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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And many advocates are promoting a vision of public health that’s less dependent on mandates and appeals to authority, and more deferent to individuals’ beliefs.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
4 Aug. 2025
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The Ptolemaic model depicted planets moving around Earth in a big circle, known as a deferent, then going around a smaller circle while retrograding, called an epicycle.—
Carlie Procell,
USA TODAY,
25 Nov. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Deferential.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/deferential. Accessed 27 Feb. 2026.
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