Synonyms of delays

delays 1 of 2

noun

plural of delay

as in waits

an instance or period of being prevented from going about one's business

there was a delay for our boarding while the airplane unloaded incoming passengers

Synonyms & Similar Words

• waits
• holdups
• postponements
• pauses
• setbacks
• detentions
• deferrals
• hesitations
• lags
• holding patterns
• holdbacks
• deferments
• slowdowns
• respites
• detainments
• reprieves
• foot-draggings

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• rushes
• dispatches
• hastes
• promptitudes

delays

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of delay

1

as in lingers

to move or act slowly

she ordered the kids to stop delaying and to get to bed

Synonyms & Similar Words

• lingers
• drags
• crawls
• pokes
• lags
• dawdles
• strolls
• marks time
• creeps
• falls behind
• hangs fire
• drops behind
• plays
• shuffles
• loiters
• stalls
• tarries
• lollygags
• mopes
• diddles
• dillydallies
• dallies
• takes one's time
• lounges
• staggers
• shilly-shallies
• drags one's feet
• fools around
• idles
• fiddles (around)
• messes around
• hangs (around or out)
• inches
• potters (around)
• slows (down or up)
• trifles
• putters (around)
• eases
• loafs
• monkeys (around)
• decelerates
• procrastinates
• ambles
• saunters
• temporizes
• plods
• lolls
• lumbers
• filibusters

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• tears
• speeds
• courses
• races
• barrels
• hastens
• careers
• hurries
• rushes
• runs
• flies
• rips
• whizzes
• dashes
• whirls
• zips
• hurtles
• rockets
• scurries
• bolts
• whisks
• scrambles
• scoots
• humps
• stampedes
• hustles
• breezes
• darts
• scuds
• bowls
• runs
• accelerates
• sprints
• jogs
• speeds (up)
• hotfoots (it)
• gallops
• trots
• quickens
• overtakes
• outstrips
• outpaces
• outruns
• catches up
• fast-forwards

2

as in postpones

to assign to a later time

our guests delayed their departure until after dinner

Synonyms & Similar Words

• postpones
• defers
• waits
• shelves
• holds over
• remits
• pauses
• lays over
• slows
• holds off (on)
• suspends
• hesitates
• puts over
• retards
• puts off
• holds up
• prolongs
• lengthens
• stays
• stretches (out)
• detains
• protracts
• extends

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• does
• acts
• works (on)
• deals (with)
• decides (upon)

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of delays

Noun

Amid the delays and setbacks, simply opening the museum may feel like a victory to its founders. — Jacqui Palumbo, CNN Money, 5 Sep. 2026

When unexpected delays crop up, even presidents have to wait. — Janay Kingsberry, The Atlantic, 5 Sep. 2026

The Games Route Network is planned to help athletes, coaches, Olympic workers and others navigate the region with few delays. — Los Angeles Times, 5 Sep. 2026

Qatar gifted the $400 million Boeing 747-8 to the United States in 2025, and the aircraft was subsequently modified for presidential use after Boeing’s replacement Air Force One program faced significant delays and cost overruns. — Rena Rowe, The Washington Examiner, 4 Sep. 2026

Instant settlement gives treasury teams continuous liquidity visibility, replacing batch-cycle delays with live cash positioning. — Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 4 Sep. 2026

For those who have wondered for months whether there will be any use-of-force investigations into the killings of Good and Pretti, the setbacks in Castro’s case reflect a pattern of delays. — Emily Witt, New Yorker, 3 Sep. 2026

The medicine showed no benefit compared to a sham treatment in the rare disease, which causes severe intellectual disability and developmental delays. — Andrew Joseph, STAT, 3 Sep. 2026

However, delays remain a major challenge as shipyards struggle with capacity, materials, and experienced workers. — Sujita Sinha, Interesting Engineering, 28 Aug. 2026

Verb

Tennis has always been highly dependent on the weather; unlike in soccer or football, rain cancels or delays a match until the court is dry enough to be playable. — Aaron Short, Curbed, 3 Sep. 2026

But a provision that delays for one month a federal ban on intoxicating hemp THC products has prompted criticism from many GOP lawmakers. — Kevin Freking, Los Angeles Times, 31 Aug. 2026

So pretending imbalance isn't happening — like when one partner is regularly absorbing all the work and smiling through it — just delays the same resentment that often festers in exchange relationships. — Mark Travers, CNBC, 30 Aug. 2026

That is not only a problem for expanding power grid infrastructure to support growing electricity demand, but also delays the process of replacing aging power transformers. — Jeremy Hsu, ArsTechnica, 24 Aug. 2026

Nearly all report that the process contributes to burnout and delays care. — Richard Menger Md Mpa, Forbes.com, 15 Aug. 2026

Cellphone use before bed delays the natural drop in cortisol that teenagers need to fall asleep, according to Alice Hoagland, PhD, director of the Insomnia Clinic at the Rochester Regional Sleep Disorder Center. — Samantha Agate, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 8 Aug. 2026

Brooklyn Village delays There’s been two major delays in the past 10 years. — Desiree Mathurin, Charlotte Observer, 6 Aug. 2026

If a hotel or event venue delays an update, an attacker may exploit that opening and take control. — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 2 Aug. 2026