adj
Meaning 1
Respectful and considerate; showing deference.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: derogative, derogatory
Standard Lemma guide
deferential
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
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UK: [ˌdɛfəˈɹɛnʃəɫ]
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US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
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CMU ARPABET: D EH2 F ER0 EH1 N CH AH0 L Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
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CMU ARPABET 2: D EH2 F ER0 EH1 N SH AH0 L Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
adj
Meaning 2
Based on deference; based on the doctrine, ideology, or wishes of others rather than one's own conclusions.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
adj
Meaning 3
Of or relating to the vas deferens.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: not-comparable
Topics: anatomy, medicine, sciences
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
adjective satellite
Meaning 4
showing deference
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: deferent, regardful
Antonyms: none provided
History
Etymology
From deference (or its Latin type *dēferentia) + -al; compare essence, essential; prudence, prudential, etc. Coined by Scottish novelist, poet and playwright Walter Scott.
From French déférentiel, from déférent + -iel.
Across languages
Translations
21 source translations are retained for this English entry.
- Bulgarian: почтителен (počtitelen) — showing deference
- French: déférent — showing deference
- German: ehrerbietig — showing deference
- Greek: ευπειθής (efpeithís) — showing deference
- Greek: ευλαβικός (evlavikós) — showing deference
- Hungarian: tisztelettudó — showing deference
- Ido: respektoza — showing deference
- Ido: respektema — showing deference
- Irish: ómósach — showing deference
- Irish: urramach — showing deference
- Italian: deferente — showing deference
- Italian: deferenziale — showing deference
- Italian: ossequente — showing deference
- Latin: obsequiōsus — showing deference
- Manx: fo-arrym — showing deference
- Portuguese: deferente — showing deference
- Spanish: deferente — showing deference
- Swedish: aktningsfull — showing deference
- Ukrainian: шанобливий (šanoblyvyj) — showing deference
- Ukrainian: поштивий (poštyvyj) — showing deference
- Spanish: deferencial — of or relating to the vas deferens