Synonyms of the word

delay

• n. A period of time before an event occurs; the act of delaying; procrastination; lingering inactivity.
• v. To put off until a later time; to defer.
• v. To retard; to stop, detain, or hinder, for a time.
• v. (obsolete) To allay; to temper.
• v. (obsolete) To dilute, temper.
• v. (obsolete) To assuage, quench, allay.

alter

• v. (transitive) To change the form or structure of.
• v. (intransitive) To become different.
• v. (transitive) To tailor clothes to make them fit.
• v. (transitive) To castrate, neuter or spay (a dog or other animal).
• v. (transitive, obsolete) To agitate; to affect mentally.

break

• v. (transitive, intransitive) To separate into two or more pieces, to fracture or crack, by a process that…
• v. (transitive) To divide (something, often money) into smaller units.
• v. (transitive) To cause (a person or animal) to lose spirit or will; to crush the spirits of.
• v. (intransitive) To be crushed, or overwhelmed with sorrow or grief.
• v. (transitive) To interrupt; to destroy the continuity of; to dissolve or terminate.
• v. (transitive) To ruin financially.
• v. (transitive) To violate, to not adhere to.
• v. (intransitive, of a fever) To pass the most dangerous part of the illness; to go down, temperaturewise.
• v. (intransitive, of a storm or spell of weather) To end.
• v. (transitive, gaming slang) To design or use a powerful (yet legal) strategy that unbalances the game in…
• v. (transitive, intransitive) To stop, or to cause to stop, functioning properly or altogether.
• v. (transitive) To cause (a barrier) to no longer bar.
• v. (transitive) To destroy the arrangement of; to throw into disorder; to pierce.
• v. (intransitive, of a wave of water) To collapse into surf, after arriving in shallow water.
• v. (intransitive) To burst forth; to make its way; to come into view.
• v. (intransitive) To interrupt or cease one's work or occupation temporarily.
• v. (transitive) To interrupt (a fall) by inserting something so that the falling object does not (immediately)…
• v. (transitive, ergative) To disclose or make known an item of news, etc.
• v. (intransitive, of morning) To arrive.
• v. (intransitive, of a sound) To become audible suddenly.
• v. (transitive) To change a steady state abruptly.
• v. (copulative, informal) To suddenly become.
• v. (intransitive) Of a voice, to alter in type: in men generally to go up, in women sometimes to go down;…
• v. (transitive) To surpass or do better than (a specific number), to do better than (a record), setting a…
• v. (sports and games).
• v. (transitive, military, most often in the passive tense) To demote, to reduce the military rank of.
• v. (transitive) To end (a connection), to disconnect.
• v. (intransitive, of an emulsion) To demulsify.
• v. (intransitive, sports) To counter-attack.
• v. (transitive, obsolete) To lay open, as a purpose; to disclose, divulge, or communicate.
• v. (intransitive) To become weakened in constitution or faculties; to lose health or strength.
• v. (intransitive, obsolete) To fail in business; to become bankrupt.
• v. (transitive) To destroy the strength, firmness, or consistency of.
• v. (transitive) To destroy the official character and standing of; to cashier; to dismiss.
• v. (intransitive) To make an abrupt or sudden change; to change the gait.
• v. (intransitive, archaic) To fall out; to terminate friendship.
• v. (of a horse) To tame, to horsebreak.
• n. An instance of breaking something into two pieces.
• n. A physical space that opens up in something or between two things.
• n. A rest or pause, usually from work. Often the mid-morning breaktime in the school day.
• n. A short holiday.
• n. A temporary split with a romantic partner.
• n. An interval or intermission between two parts of a performance, for example a theatre show, broadcast,…
• n. A significant change in circumstance, attitude, perception, or focus of attention.
• n. The beginning (of the morning).
• n. An act of escaping.
• n. (computing) The separation between lines or paragraphs of a written text.
• n. (Britain, weather) A change, particularly the end of a spell of persistent good or bad weather.
• n. (sports and games).
• n. (dated) A large four-wheeled carriage, having a straight body and calash top, with the driver's seat in…
• n. (equitation) A sharp bit or snaffle.
• n. (music) A short section of music, often between verses, in which some performers stop while others continue.
• n. (music) The point in the musical scale at which a woodwind instrument is designed to overblow, that is,…
• n. (music) A section of extended repetition of the percussion break to a song, created by a hip-hop DJ as…

change

• v. (intransitive) To become something different.
• v. (transitive, ergative) To make something into something different.
• v. (transitive) To replace.
• v. (intransitive) To replace one's clothing.
• v. (intransitive) To transfer to another vehicle (train, bus, etc.).
• v. (archaic) To exchange.
• v. (transitive) To change hand while riding (a horse).
• n. (countable) The process of becoming different.
• n. (uncountable) Small denominations of money given in exchange for a larger denomination.
• n. (countable) A replacement, e.g. a change of clothes.
• n. (uncountable) Money given back when a customer hands over more than the exact price of an item.
• n. (uncountable) Coins (as opposed to paper money).
• n. (countable) A transfer between vehicles.
• n. (baseball) A change-up pitch.
• n. (campanology) Any order in which a number of bells are struck, other than that of the diatonic scale.
• n. (dated) A place where merchants and others meet to transact business; an exchange.
• n. (Scotland, dated) A public house; an alehouse.

check

• n. (chess) A situation in which the king is directly threatened by an opposing piece.
• n. An inspection or examination.
• n. A control; a limit or stop.
• n. (US) A mark (especially a checkmark: ✓) used as an indicator, equivalent to a tick (UK).
• n. (US) An order to a bank to pay money to a named person or entity; a cheque (UK, Canada).
• n. (US) A bill, particularly in a restaurant.
• n. (contact sports) A maneuver performed by a player to take another player out of the play.
• n. A token used instead of cash in gaming machines.
• n. A lengthwise separation through the growth rings in wood.
• n. A mark, certificate, or token, by which, errors may be prevented, or a thing or person may be identified.
• n. (falconry) The forsaking by a hawk of its proper game to follow other birds.
• n. A small chink or crack.
• v. To inspect; to examine.
• v. To verify the accuracy of a text or translation, usually making some corrections (proofread) or many (copyedit).
• v. (US, often used with "off") To mark items on a list (with a checkmark or by crossing them out) that have…
• v. To control, limit, or halt.
• v. To verify or compare with a source of information.
• v. To leave in safekeeping.
• v. To leave with a shipping agent for shipping.
• v. (street basketball) To pass or bounce the ball to an opponent from behind the three-point line and have…
• v. (contact sports) To hit another player with one's body.
• v. (poker) To remain in a hand without betting. Only legal if no one has yet bet.
• v. (chess) To make a move which puts an adversary's piece, especially the king, in check; to put in check.
• v. To chide, rebuke, or reprove.
• v. (nautical) To slack or ease off, as a brace which is too stiffly extended.
• v. To crack or gape open, as wood in drying; or to crack in small checks, as varnish, paint, etc.
• v. To make checks or chinks in; to cause to crack.
• v. To make a stop; to pause; with at.
• v. (obsolete) To clash or interfere.
• v. To act as a curb or restraint.
• v. (falconry) To turn, when in pursuit of proper game, and fly after other birds.
• n. (textiles, usually pluralized) A pattern made up of a grid of squares of alternating colors; a checkered…

decelerate

• v. to reduce the velocity of something.
• v. to reduce the rate of advancement of something, such as a disease.
• v. (intransitive) to go slower.

delay

• n. A period of time before an event occurs; the act of delaying; procrastination; lingering inactivity.
• v. To put off until a later time; to defer.
• v. To retard; to stop, detain, or hinder, for a time.
• v. (obsolete) To allay; to temper.
• v. (obsolete) To dilute, temper.
• v. (obsolete) To assuage, quench, allay.

detain

• v. (transitive) To keep someone from proceeding by holding them back or making claims on their attention.
• v. (transitive) To put under custody.
• v. (transitive) To keep back or from; to withhold.
• v. (transitive) To seize goods for official purposes.

hold

• adj. (obsolete) Gracious; friendly; faithful; true.
• v. (transitive) To grasp or grip.
• v. (transitive) To contain or store.
• v. (heading) To maintain or keep to a position or state.
• v. (heading) To maintain or keep to particular opinions, promises, actions.
• v. (tennis, transitive, intransitive) To win one's own service game.
• v. To take place, to occur.
• v. To organise an event or meeting (usually in passive voice).
• v. (archaic) To derive right or title.
• n. A grasp or grip.
• n. A place where animals are held for safety.
• n. An order that something is to be reserved or delayed, limiting or preventing how it can be dealt with.
• n. Something reserved or kept.
• n. Power over someone or something.
• n. The ability to persist.
• n. The property of maintaining the shape of styled hair.
• n. (wrestling) A position or grip used to control the opponent.
• n. (exercise (sport)) An exercise involving holding a position for a set time.
• n. (gambling) The percentage the house wins on a gamble, the house or bookmaker's hold.
• n. (gambling) The wager amount, the total hold.
• n. (tennis) An instance of holding one's service game, as opposed to being broken.
• n. The part of an object one is intended to grasp, or anything one can use for grasping with hands or feet.
• n. A fruit machine feature allowing one or more of the reels to remain fixed while the others spin.
• n. (video games, dated) A pause facility.
• n. The queueing system on telephones and similar communication systems which maintains a connection when…
• n. (nautical, aviation) The cargo area of a ship or aircraft, (often cargo hold).

holdup

• n. Alternative spelling of hold-up.

inactivity

• n. The quality of being inactive; idleness; passiveness.

intermission

• n. A break between two performances or sessions, such as at a concert, play, seminar, or religious assembly.

interruption

• n. The act of interrupting, or the state of being interrupted.
• n. A time interval during which there is a cessation of something.

modify

• v. (transitive) To make partial changes to.
• v. (intransitive) To be or become modified.

pause

• v. (intransitive) To take a temporary rest, take a break for a short period after an effort.
• v. (intransitive) To interrupt an activity and wait.
• v. (intransitive) To hesitate; to hold back; to delay.
• v. (transitive) To halt the play or playback of, temporarily, so that it can be resumed from the same point.
• v. (intransitive, obsolete) To consider; to reflect.
• n. A temporary stop or rest; an intermission of action; interruption; suspension; cessation.
• n. A short time for relaxing and doing something else.
• n. Hesitation; suspense; doubt.
• n. In writing and printing, a mark indicating the place and nature of an arrest of voice in reading; a punctuation…
• n. A break or paragraph in writing.
• n. Alternative spelling of Pause (“a button that pauses or resumes something”).
• n. (as direct object) take pause: hesitate; give pause: cause to hesitate.

postponement

• n. A delay, as a formal delay in a proceeding.

retard

• n. Retardation; delay.
• n. (slang, offensive, dated) A person with mental retardation.
• n. (slang, offensive) A stupid person, or one who is slow to learn.
• v. (transitive) To keep delaying; to continue to hinder; to prevent from progress; to render more slow in…
• v. (transitive) To put off; to postpone.
• v. (transitive, obsolete) To be slow or dilatory to perform (something).
• v. (intransitive) To decelerate; to slow down.
• v. (intransitive, obsolete) To stay back.

slow

• adj. Taking a long time to move or go a short distance, or to perform an action; not quick in motion; proceeding…
• adj. Not happening in a short time; spread over a comparatively long time.
• adj. Of reduced intellectual capacity; not quick to comprehend.
• adj. Not hasty; not precipitate; lacking in promptness; acting with deliberation.
• adj. (of a clock or the like) Behind in time; indicating a time earlier than the true time.
• adj. Lacking spirit; deficient in liveliness or briskness.
• adj. (of a period of time) Not busy; lacking activity.
• v. (transitive) To make (something) run, move, etc. less quickly; to reduce the speed of.
• v. (transitive) To keep from going quickly; to hinder the progress of.
• v. (intransitive) To become slow; to slacken in speed; to decelerate.
• n. Someone who is slow; a sluggard.
• n. (music) A slow song.
• adv. Slowly.

stay

• v. (transitive) To prop; support; sustain; hold up; steady.
• v. (transitive) To stop; detain; keep back; delay; hinder.
• v. (transitive) To restrain; withhold; check; stop.
• v. (transitive) To put off; defer; postpone; delay; keep back.
• v. (transitive) To hold the attention of.
• v. (transitive) To bear up under; to endure; to hold out against; to resist.
• v. (transitive) To wait for; await.
• v. (intransitive) To rest; depend; rely.
• v. (intransitive) To stop; come to a stand or standstill.
• v. (intransitive) To come to an end; cease.
• v. (intransitive) To dwell; linger; tarry; wait.
• v. (intransitive) To make a stand; stand.
• v. (intransitive) To hold out, as in a race or contest; last or persevere to the end.
• v. (intransitive) To remain in a particular place, especially for an indefinite time; sojourn; abide.
• v. (intransitive) To wait; rest in patience or expectation.
• v. (intransitive, used with on or upon) To wait as an attendant; give ceremonious or submissive attendance.
• v. (intransitive) To continue to have a particular quality.
• v. To support from sinking; to sustain with strength; to satisfy in part or for the time.
• v. (obsolete) To remain for the purpose of; to wait for.
• v. To cause to cease; to put an end to.
• v. To fasten or secure with stays.
• n. A prop; a support.
• n. (archaic) A fastening for a garment; a hook; a clasp; anything to hang another thing on.
• n. That which holds or restrains; obstacle; check; hindrance; restraint.
• n. A stop; a halt; a break or cessation of action, motion, or progress.
• n. (archaic) A standstill; a state of rest; entire cessation of motion or progress.
• n. A postponement, especially of an execution or other punishment.
• n. A fixed state; fixedness; stability; permanence.
• n. Continuance or a period of time spent in a place; abode for an indefinite time; sojourn.
• n. (nautical) A station or fixed anchorage for vessels.
• n. Restraint of passion; prudence; moderation; caution; steadiness; sobriety.
• n. A piece of stiff material, such as plastic or whalebone, used to stiffen a piece of clothing.
• n. (obsolete) Hindrance; let; check.
• n. (nautical) A strong rope supporting a mast, and leading from one masthead down to some other, or other…
• n. A guy, rope, or wire supporting or stabilizing a platform, such as a bridge, a pole, such as a tentpole,…
• n. (chain-cable) The transverse piece in a link.
• v. (transitive, nautical) To incline forward, aft, or to one side by means of stays.
• v. (transitive, nautical) To tack; put on the other tack.
• v. (intransitive, nautical) To change; tack; go about; be in stays, as a ship.
• adj. (Britain dialectal) Steep; ascending.
• adj. (Britain dialectal) (of a roof) Steeply pitched.
• adj. (Britain dialectal) Difficult to negotiate; not easy to access; sheer.
• adj. (Britain dialectal) Stiff; upright; unbending; reserved; haughty; proud.
• adv. (Britain dialectal) Steeply.

suspension

• n. The act of suspending, or the state of being suspended.
• n. A temporary or conditional delay, interruption or discontinuation.
• n. The state of a solid or substance produced when its particles are mixed with, but not dissolved in, a…
• n. The act of keeping a person who is listening in doubt and expectation of what is to follow.
• n. (education) The process of barring a student from school grounds as a form of punishment (particularly…
• n. (music) The act of or discord produced by prolonging one or more tones of a chord into the chord which…
• n. (Scots law) A stay or postponement of the execution of a sentence, usually by letters of suspension granted…
• n. (topology) A topological space derived from another by taking the product of the original space with an…
• n. (topology) A function derived, in a standard way, from another, such that the instant function's domain…
• n. (vehicles) The system of springs and shock absorbers connected to the wheels in an automobile or car,…

wait

• v. (transitive, now rare) To delay movement or action until the arrival or occurrence of; to await. (Now…
• v. (intransitive) To delay movement or action until some event or time; to remain neglected or in readiness.
• v. (intransitive, US) To wait tables; to serve customers in a restaurant or other eating establishment.
• v. (obsolete) To attend on; to accompany; especially, to attend with ceremony or respect.
• v. (obsolete) To attend as a consequence; to follow upon; to accompany.
• v. (obsolete) To defer or postpone (a meal).
• v. (intransitive) To remain celibate while one's lover is unavailable.
• n. A delay.
• n. An ambush.
• n. (obsolete) One who watches; a watchman.
• n. (in the plural, obsolete, Britain) Hautboys, or oboes, played by town musicians.
• n. (in the plural, archaic, Britain) Musicians who sing or play at night or in the early morning, especially…