Postpone Meaning
/pəʊstˈpəʊn/Definition, CEFR level B1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
verbTo delay or put off an event, appointment, etc.
verbTo place after in order; to deem less important.
Sentence Examples
For the moment, we want to postpone making a decision.
You may as well postpone your departure.
we'll postpone the meeting till next week.
CEFR Practice Quiz
Heavy rain can force organizers to ____ an outdoor concert until next week.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The organizers decided to ____ the outdoor concert due to the severe weather forecast.
Word Origin & History
From Latin postpōnō (“to put after; to postpone”) from post (“after”) + pōnō (“to put; to place”), compare forestall.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"“[…] Churchill, my dear fellow, we have such greedy sharks, and wolves in lamb's clothing. Oh, dear, there's so much to tell you, so many warnings to give you, but all that must be postponed for the moment.”"
— 1918, W[illiam] B[abington] Maxwell, chapter VII, in The Mirror and the Lamp, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC:
"Significant rail projects have been mothballed before in the face of changed circumstances – in particular, the LNER Woodhead project which was postponed due to wartime conditions and not revived until 1948, as money became available after nationalisation."
— 2020 December 2, Industry Insider, “The costs on cutting carbon”, in Rail, page 76:
"Why should the See of Antioch, that most ancient and truly Apostolical Church, where the Christian name began […] be postponed to Alexandria?"
— 1687, Isaac Barrow, A Treatise of the Pope's Supremacy, 3rd edition, page 161:
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CEFR Practice Quiz
Heavy rain can force organizers to ____ an outdoor concert until next week.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The organizers decided to ____ the outdoor concert due to the severe weather forecast.