delay

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

1. v. To postpone until a later time; defer.
2. v. To cause to be later or slower than expected or desired: Heavy traffic delayed us.
3. v. To act or move slowly; put off an action or a decision.
4. n. The act of delaying; postponement: responded without delay.
5. n. The condition of being delayed; detainment.
6. n. The period of time during which one is delayed.
7. n. The interval of time between two events.

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. To put off; defer; postpone; remit to a later time, as something to be done.
2. To retard; stop, detain, or hinder for a time; obstruct or impede the course or progress of: as, the mail is delayed by bad roads.
3. To linger; move slowly; stop for a time; loiter; be dilatory.
4. n. A putting off; a deferring; an extension of the time; postponement; procrastination: as, the delay of trial.
5. n. A lingering; loitering; stay; hindrance to progress.
6. To alloy; dilute; temper; soften; weaken.

Wiktionary

1. v. obsolete To dilute, temper.
2. v. obsolete To assuage, quench, allay.
3. v. To put off until a later time; to distract.
4. v. To retard; to stop, detain, or hinder, for a time.
5. n. previously unexpected period of time before an event occurs; the act of delaying.

GNU Webster's 1913

1. n. A putting off or deferring; procrastination; lingering inactivity; stop; detention; hindrance.
2. v. To put off; to defer; to procrastinate; to prolong the time of or before.
3. v. To retard; to stop, detain, or hinder, for a time; to retard the motion, or time of arrival, of.
4. v. obsolete To allay; to temper.
5. v. To move slowly; to stop for a time; to linger; to tarry.

WordNet 3.0

1. v. cause to be slowed down or delayed
2. n. the act of delaying; inactivity resulting in something being put off until a later time
3. v. stop or halt
4. v. slow the growth or development of
5. n. time during which some action is awaited
6. v. act later than planned, scheduled, or required