Synonyms of shelve

shelve

verb

ˈshelv 

as in to postpone

to assign to a later time

let's shelve the project for now

Synonyms & Similar Words

• postpone
• delay
• defer
• wait
• suspend
• put over
• remit
• put off
• lay over
• hold over
• hold off (on)
• hesitate
• hold up
• pause
• prolong
• slow
• stay
• lengthen
• extend
• stretch (out)
• retard
• detain
• protract

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• do
• work (on)
• act
• deal (with)
• decide (upon)

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of shelve

And last Sunday, in these pages, Coulter lamented losing his unfettered discretion on where to shelve books. — Robert Steinbuch, Arkansas Online, 18 Sep. 2026

Others, including Flutterwave, have quietly shelved Nasdaq ambitions. — Alexander Onukwue, semafor.com, 16 Sep. 2026

But federal government attorneys informed the court late Monday that the board has shelved the proposal from its September meeting agenda. — Joey Garrison, USA Today, 15 Sep. 2026

Course designer Leopoldo Palacios’s influential track featured a rollback to the water tray — a bit of trickery that Palacios had famously used at the 2000 Sydney Olympics and had shelved since. — Tilly Berendt, New York Times, 14 Sep. 2026