procrastinate

C2+ Topic:Actions & Processes

US /proʊˈkræstɪˌneɪt/ UK /prəʊˈkræstɪneɪt/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

verb
to delay or postpone action needlessly

He tends to procrastinate until the deadline is dangerously close.

Verb forms

Verb forms are not available for this word yet.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 verb · to delay or postpone action... delay postpone dawdle stall dally temporize defer

Opposites

hasten expedite hurry

Word family

Derived forms procrastinationprocrastinatorprocrastinating

Related forms crastinate

Simplified etymology

Procrastinate comes from Latin procrastinare, “to put off until the morning,” with cras meaning “tomorrow.” It entered English in the mid-16th century with the sense of delaying something that should be done.

Etymology

From Latin procrastinatus, past participle of procrastinare ('to put off until tomorrow'), from pro- ('forward') + crastinus ('of tomorrow'), from cras ('tomorrow').

procrastinare Latin cras Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Actions & Processes Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# procrastinate

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** verb
**IPA (US):** /proʊˈkræstɪˌneɪt/
**IPA (UK):** /prəʊˈkræstɪneɪt/

## Meanings
1. to delay or postpone action needlessly

## Examples
- He tends to procrastinate until the deadline is dangerously close.

## Synonyms
- delay
- postpone
- dawdle
- stall
- dally
- temporize
- defer

## Antonyms
- hasten
- expedite
- hurry

## Derived Forms
- procrastination
- procrastinator
- procrastinating

## Related Forms
- crastinate

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: procrastinare
- Root: cras

## Etymology
From Latin procrastinatus, past participle of procrastinare ('to put off until tomorrow'), from pro- ('forward') + crastinus ('of tomorrow'), from cras ('tomorrow').

## AI Etymology
Procrastinate comes from Latin procrastinatus, past participle of procrastinare ('to put off until tomorrow'), from pro- ('forward') + crastinus ('of tomorrow'), from cras ('tomorrow'). The form is best read as a historical transfer or inheritance, with its older language material carrying the main semantic load. As a verb, it means "to delay or postpone action needlessly", so the modern sense keeps the older action or relation visible. Relevant historical forms include Latin procrastinare and Latin cras. Derivative forms include procrastination, procrastinator, procrastinating; related words include crastinate.

## Topics
- Actions & Processes
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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