VOOZH about

URL: https://www.wordreference.com/definition/temporize

⇱ temporize - WordReference.com Dictionary of English


temporize

UK:**UK and possibly other pronunciationsUK and possibly other pronunciations/ˈtɛmpəraɪz/US:USA pronunciation: IPA and respellingUSA pronunciation: IPA/ˈtɛmpəˌraɪz/ ,USA pronunciation: respelling(tempə rīz′)

Inflections of 'temporize' (v): (⇒ conjugate)
temporizes
v 3rd person singular (US & UK)
temporizing
v pres p (US & UK)
temporized
v past (US & UK)
temporized
v past p (US & UK)

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
tem•po•rize /ˈtɛmpəˌraɪz/USA pronunciation   v., -rized, -riz•ing. 
  1. to refuse to come to a decision in order to gain time: [no object]He temporized until he had more time to think the problem through.[used with quotations]"I just don't know,'' he temporized, "we'll have to wait and see.''
tem•po•riz•er, n. [countable]See -temp-.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026
tem•po•rize  (tempə rīz′),USA pronunciation v.i., -rized, -riz•ing. 
  1. to be indecisive or evasive to gain time or delay acting.
  2. to comply with the time or occasion;
    yield temporarily or ostensibly to prevailing opinion or circumstances.
  3. to treat or parley so as to gain time (usually fol. by with).
  4. to come to terms (usually fol. by with).
  5. to effect a compromise (usually fol. by between).
Also,[esp. Brit.,] tempo•rise′. 
  • Medieval Latin temporizāre to hang back, delay, equivalent. to Latin tempor- (stem of tempus) time + Medieval Latin -izāre -ize
  • 1570–80
tem′po•ri•zation, n. 
tempo•riz′er, n. 
tempo•riz′ing•ly, adv. 
    1. hedge, stall, equivocate.

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
temporize, temporise /ˈtɛmpəˌraɪz/ vb (intransitive)
  1. to delay, act evasively, or protract a discussion, negotiation, etc, esp in order to gain time or effect a compromise
  2. to adapt oneself to the circumstances or occasion, as by temporary or apparent agreement
Etymology: 16th Century: from French temporiser, from Medieval Latin temporizāre, from Latin tempus timeˌtemporiˈzation, ˌtemporiˈsation n ˈtempoˌrizer, ˈtempoˌriser n
'temporize' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):

Forum discussions with the word(s) "temporize" in the title:


Look up "temporize" at Merriam-Webster
Look up "temporize" at dictionary.com
  • Go to Preferences page and choose from different actions for taps or mouse clicks.

In other languages: Spanish | French | Italian | Portuguese | Romanian | German | Dutch | Swedish | Russian | Polish | Czech | Greek | Turkish | Chinese | Japanese | Korean | Arabic

Advertisements
Advertisements
Report an inappropriate ad.
WordReference.com
WORD OF THE DAY
GET THE DAILY EMAIL!
Become a WordReference Supporter to view the site ad-free.
Firefox users: use search shortcuts for the fastest search of WordReference.
Copyright © 2026 WordReference.com
Please report any problems.