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
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in lingers
to move or act slowly
she ordered the kids to stop delaying and to get to bed
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in postpones
to assign to a later time
our guests delayed their departure until after dinner
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of delays
Julie Walker, Chicago Tribune, 11 Apr. 2026
The police department, posting on the social media site X, had urged travelers to avoid the area Saturday morning due to a police investigation and to expect delays and heavy traffic.
—Julie Walker, Los Angeles Times, 11 Apr. 2026
This is one of the missions originally awarded to United Launch Alliance under the NSSL Phase 2 contracts, but shifted to SpaceX after delays in ULA’s Vulcan certification.
—Richard Tribou, The Orlando Sentinel, 11 Apr. 2026
That network of support — Artemis counts suppliers in all 50 states — has helped the program survive efforts to kill it over years of delays and cost overruns.
—Sana Pashankar, Fortune, 11 Apr. 2026
Exports of helium, a key material in chipmaking and other manufacturing processes, have already been significantly curtailed by the fighting, and some European companies have faced delays to semiconductor deliveries from Asia due to flight path disruption.
—Kai Nicol-Schwarz, CNBC, 10 Apr. 2026
The Tortuga Music Festival is expected to cause traffic delays from April 10 to 12 in Fort Lauderdale.
—Sarah Perkel, USA Today, 10 Apr. 2026
An unauthorized person on the tracks of the Bay Area Rapid Transit train between the Coliseum and San Leandro stops caused major delays Saturday afternoon, the agency said.
—Caelyn Pender, Mercury News, 4 Apr. 2026
Police said to expect delays in the area and that all traffic eastbound is being detoured onto exit 40.
—Mirna Alsharif, NBC news, 4 Apr. 2026
Kate Wolffe, Sacbee.com, 16 Apr. 2026
According to the Terner Center at UC Berkeley, each additional public funding source an affordable developer uses, on average, delays a project four months and increases total cost by $20,460 per unit — more than $2 million for a 100-unit community.
—Andrew Khouri, Los Angeles Times, 15 Apr. 2026
That essentially delays the chances of a Fed rate cut for the time being and could result in higher borrowing costs for a series of products, of which mortgages and mortgage refinance loans won't be excluded.
—Matt Richardson, CBS News, 10 Apr. 2026
Refrigeration delays the decay of strawberries.
—Jessica Farthing, Southern Living, 10 Apr. 2026
That delays emptying of the stomach.
—Ct Jones, Rolling Stone, 27 Mar. 2026
But having firefighters wait before starting preparations also delays when they can be dispatched to emergencies, which has lengthened response times — and has likely cost many lives across the city, the 60-page audit says.
—David Garrick, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Mar. 2026
With annuals like snapdragons, removing flower stalks delays the formation of seed production and the plants send out more shoots.
—Tom MacCubbin, The Orlando Sentinel, 21 Mar. 2026
Too much light in the evening — that extra hour from daylight saving time — delays that surge and the cycle gets out of sync.
—Lauran Neergaard, Chicago Tribune, 7 Mar. 2026
Noun
The police department, posting on the social platform X, advised travelers in the morning to avoid the area due to a police investigation and to expect delays and heavy traffic.
—Julie Walker, Chicago Tribune, 11 Apr. 2026
The police department, posting on the social media site X, had urged travelers to avoid the area Saturday morning due to a police investigation and to expect delays and heavy traffic.
—Julie Walker, Los Angeles Times, 11 Apr. 2026
This is one of the missions originally awarded to United Launch Alliance under the NSSL Phase 2 contracts, but shifted to SpaceX after delays in ULA’s Vulcan certification.
—Richard Tribou, The Orlando Sentinel, 11 Apr. 2026
That network of support — Artemis counts suppliers in all 50 states — has helped the program survive efforts to kill it over years of delays and cost overruns.
—Sana Pashankar, Fortune, 11 Apr. 2026
Exports of helium, a key material in chipmaking and other manufacturing processes, have already been significantly curtailed by the fighting, and some European companies have faced delays to semiconductor deliveries from Asia due to flight path disruption.
—Kai Nicol-Schwarz, CNBC, 10 Apr. 2026
The Tortuga Music Festival is expected to cause traffic delays from April 10 to 12 in Fort Lauderdale.
—Sarah Perkel, USA Today, 10 Apr. 2026
An unauthorized person on the tracks of the Bay Area Rapid Transit train between the Coliseum and San Leandro stops caused major delays Saturday afternoon, the agency said.
—Caelyn Pender, Mercury News, 4 Apr. 2026
Police said to expect delays in the area and that all traffic eastbound is being detoured onto exit 40.
—Mirna Alsharif, NBC news, 4 Apr. 2026
Verb
The plan also maintains full scope Medi-Cal for asylees and other immigrant groups who were cut out of Medicaid by the federal government and delays Medi-Cal premiums for undocumented immigrants that would otherwise begin on July 1, 2027 to July 1, 2028.
—Kate Wolffe, Sacbee.com, 16 Apr. 2026
According to the Terner Center at UC Berkeley, each additional public funding source an affordable developer uses, on average, delays a project four months and increases total cost by $20,460 per unit — more than $2 million for a 100-unit community.
—Andrew Khouri, Los Angeles Times, 15 Apr. 2026
That essentially delays the chances of a Fed rate cut for the time being and could result in higher borrowing costs for a series of products, of which mortgages and mortgage refinance loans won't be excluded.
—Matt Richardson, CBS News, 10 Apr. 2026
Refrigeration delays the decay of strawberries.
—Jessica Farthing, Southern Living, 10 Apr. 2026
That delays emptying of the stomach.
—Ct Jones, Rolling Stone, 27 Mar. 2026
But having firefighters wait before starting preparations also delays when they can be dispatched to emergencies, which has lengthened response times — and has likely cost many lives across the city, the 60-page audit says.
—David Garrick, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Mar. 2026
With annuals like snapdragons, removing flower stalks delays the formation of seed production and the plants send out more shoots.
—Tom MacCubbin, The Orlando Sentinel, 21 Mar. 2026
Too much light in the evening — that extra hour from daylight saving time — delays that surge and the cycle gets out of sync.
—Lauran Neergaard, Chicago Tribune, 7 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for delays
Noun
-
Here are five players who could end up being taken later than the consensus suggests and seven college football standouts who could face long waits.—
Jim Reineking,
USA Today,
23 Apr. 2026
-
Columbines are perfect for gardeners seeking quick, stunning blooms without long waits.—
Lauren Landers,
The Spruce,
22 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
While attendance has improved following partial compensation measures, the damage to morale and institutional trust lingers.—
Nicole Sganga,
CBS News,
23 Apr. 2026
-
Evoking a lifeless image to start a conversation about energy flow was counterintuitive, but the image lingers and proves his point.—
Jasna Hodžić,
Big Think,
22 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Instead, the sentencing for the teenager falls under a process known as Extended Jurisdiction Juvenile, which postpones an adult sentence until his 21st birthday.—
Conor Wight,
CBS News,
28 Feb. 2026
-
Discord postpones age verification Discord, the popular platform for gamers to communicate online, is postponing its controversial age verification policy after receiving swift backlash from users with concerns about their privacy.—
Boston Herald Wire Services,
Boston Herald,
25 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
The share of Americans who disapprove of the job that Congress is doing stands at an all-time high as the partial government shutdown drags on, according to new polling from Gallup.—
Morgan Chalfant,
semafor.com,
22 Apr. 2026
-
The longer his nomination drags on, the greater the chance that the Fed and other central banks will be able to look past the Iran war's oil-price shock and get back to worrying about a weakening labor market.—
Matt Peterson,
CNBC,
21 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Postponing elections thus also defers possibilities for political transformation.—
Jasmin Lilian Diab,
The Conversation,
5 Apr. 2026
-
Depending on how long the renter defers part of the payment, Livble’s fees can translate into effective annual percentage rates of roughly 104% to 139%.—
Ken Sweet,
Fortune,
4 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Think about how often your toddler crawls near the dog bed or your kids toss pet toys around the living room.—
Lauren Jarvis-Gibson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
9 Apr. 2026
-
In the book, Grace drags Rocky back to his part of the ship, exposing himself to the Eridian environment; in the film, Rocky crawls back while Grace is unconscious.—
Matthew Razak,
Space.com,
23 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The clip also pokes fun at Roach's retirement announcement in 2023, only to return to the industry two years later.—
Catherine Santino,
PEOPLE,
10 Apr. 2026
-
Your 6th House of Health takes focus with the nurturing Moon there, though Luna also pokes expensive Jupiter in your 3rd House of Distractions.—
Tarot.com,
The Orlando Sentinel,
2 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Lens, which lags just one point behind Paris Saint-Germain in the French league standings, had previously met Toulouse on Friday in Ligue 1, with the northern side coming out on top 3-2 after going two goals down.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
21 Apr. 2026
-
Russia still lags well behind the West — and China — in overall ship numbers, and its navy has suffered serious setbacks in the Black Sea at the hands of Ukraine, including the sinking of the fleet’s flagship.—
Alan Crawford,
Bloomberg,
20 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Delays.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/delays. Accessed 24 Apr. 2026.
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