All 4 Uses of
defer
in
The Iliad by Homer - (translated by: Edward)
- death be long deferr'd
Chpt 2.9 *deferr'd = postponed (or put off)unconventional spelling: This is more commonly spelled deferred.
- Thou in the chambers of her new-found home
Hast made his bride a weeping widow; thou
Hast fill'd with bitt'rest grief his parents' hearts:
Some solace might those hapless mourners find,
Could I thy head and armour in the hands
Of Panthous and of honour'd Phrontis place;
Nor uncontested shall the proof remain,
Nor long deferr'd, of vict'ry or defeat.†Chpt 2.17deferr'd = postponedunconventional spelling: This is more commonly spelled deferred.
- Whom answer'd thus Achilles swift of foot:
"Most mighty Agamemnon, King of men,
These matters to some future time were best
Deferr'd, some hour of respite from the fight,
Of rage less fiercely burning in my breast;
But slaughter'd now they lie, whom Priam's son,
Hector, hath slain, by Jove to vict'ry led.†Chpt 2.19
- To whom the Cloud-compeller thus replied:
"Juno, thy visit yet awhile defer;†Chpt 2.14 *
Definitions:
-
(1)
(defer as in: deferred the decision) delay or postpone (hold off until a later time)
-
(2)
(defer as in: deferred to her wishes) submit or yield (typically to another person's opinion because of respect for that person or their knowledge)
-
(3)
(meaning too rare to warrant focus) meaning too rare to warrant focus:
More rarely, defer can be used to indicate showing respect or deference; as when Dickens wrote in Bleak House: "They know him there and defer to him."