dilatory

(dĭl'ə-tôr'ē, -tōr'ē)
adj.

1. Intended to delay.
2. Tending to postpone or delay: dilatory in his work habits. See synonyms at slow.

[Middle English dilatorie, from Latin dīlātōrius, from dīlātor, delayer, from dīlātus, past participle of differre, to delay : dī-, dis-, apart; see dis- + lātus, carried.]

dilatorily dil'a·to'ri·ly adv.
dilatoriness dil'a·to'ri·ness n.

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meaning 'given to or causing delay', is pronounced dil-tǝ-ri. The same stress pattern applies, rather more awkwardly, to the derivative forms dilatorily and dilatoriness.

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adjective

Proceeding at a rate less than usual or desired: laggard, slow, slow-footed, slow-going, slow-paced, tardy. Informal poky¹. Idioms: slow as molasses in January. See fast/slow/velocity.

adj

Definition: procrastinating
Antonyms: diligent, eager, enthusiastic, hard-working, ready, zealous

This entry contains information applicable to United States law only.

Tending to cause a delay in judicial proceedings.

Dilatory tactics are methods by which the rules of procedure are used by a party to a lawsuit in an abusive manner to delay the progress of the proceedings. For example, when numerous motions brought before a court for postponement are baseless, time is wasted because the court must stop the course of ongoing proceedings to examine whether there is any merit to the motions. The party in whose interests the motion is brought uses this tactic to gain time to enhance his or her position, or to postpone an action by a court as long as possible to minimize the impact of a decree rendered against him or her. A party found to engage in dilatory tactics may be held in contempt of court.

IN BRIEF: Tending to be late.

Lose this day loitering, 'twill be the same story Tomorrow, and the rest more dilatory; Thus, indecision brings its own delays And days are lost lamenting over days, Are you in earnest? Seize this very moment; What you can do, or dream you can, begin it. — Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832).

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For a list of words related to dilatory, see:

• Inert, Lazy, Tired, or Insensate

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See words rhyming with "dilatory."

  See crossword solutions for the clue Dilatory.

Dansk (Danish)
adj. - sendrægtig, forsinkende

Nederlands (Dutch)
traag

Français (French)
adj. - lent, dilatoire

Deutsch (German)
adj. - träge, langsam

Ελληνική (Greek)
adj. - αναβλητικός, παρελκυστικός

Italiano (Italian)
tardivo

Português (Portuguese)
adj. - dilatório

Русский (Russian)
медлительный

Español (Spanish)
adj. - dilatorio, lento

Svenska (Swedish)
adj. - långsam, förhalande

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
慢的, 拖延的

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
adj. - 慢的, 拖延的

한국어 (Korean)
adj. - 늑장의, 지연된

日本語 (Japanese)
adj. - のろい, 引き延ばしの, 時間稼ぎの

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(صفه) متباطئ, متلكئ‏

עברית (Hebrew)
adj. - ‮רשלני, מעכב, איטי‬

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