deliberate

English

Etymology

From Latin deliberatus, past participle of delibero (“I consider, weigh well”), from dē- +‎ *libero, libro (“I weigh”), from *libera, libra (“a balance”); see librate.

Pronunciation

• (adjective):
  • enPR: dĭlĭbʹərət, IPA^(key): /dɪˈlɪbəɹət/
  • (weak vowel merger) enPR: dəlĭbʹərət, IPA^(key): /dəˈlɪbəɹət/

  • Audio (US)

    (file)

• (verb):
  • enPR: dĭlĭbʹərāt, IPA^(key): /dɪˈlɪbəɹeɪt/
  • (weak vowel merger) enPR: dəlĭbʹərāt, IPA^(key): /dəˈlɪbəɹeɪt/

  • Audio (US)

    (file)

• Hyphenation: de‧lib‧er‧ate

Adjective

deliberate (comparative more deliberate, superlative most deliberate)

1. Done on purpose; intentional.

   Synonyms: purposeful, volitional; see also Thesaurus:intentional

   Antonyms: unintentional, unwitting

   Tripping me was a deliberate action.

2. Formed with deliberation; carefully considered; not sudden or rash.

   Synonyms: careful, cautious, well-advised; see also Thesaurus:cautious

   a deliberate opinion; a deliberate measure or result

   • 1603-4, William Shakespeare, Measure for Measure:

     settled visage and deliberate word

3. Of a person, weighing facts and arguments with a view to a choice or decision; carefully considering the probable consequences of a step; slow in determining.

   Synonyms: circumspect, thoughtful

   The jury took eight hours to come to its deliberate verdict.

4. Not hasty or sudden; slow.
   • 1803, William Wirt, The Letters of the British Spy:

     His enunciation was so deliberate.

Derived terms

• deliberate smoke
• deliberately

Translations

intentional

• Belarusian: наўмы́сны (naŭmýsny)
• Bulgarian: уми́шлен (bg) (umíšlen), преднаме́рен (bg) (prednaméren)
• Catalan: deliberat (ca)
• Chinese:

  Cantonese: 故意 (gu³ ji³), 特登 (yue) (dak⁶ dang¹), 專登／专登 (yue) (zyun¹ dang¹)

  Mandarin: 故意 (zh) (gùyì), 蓄意 (zh) (xùyì), 有意 (zh) (yǒuyì), 刻意 (zh) (kèyì), 存心 (zh) (cúnxīn)

• Czech: úmyslný (cs) m, záměrný (cs) m
• Danish: forsætlig (da), bevidst, overlagt
• Dutch: opzettelijk (nl), opzettelijke (nl), met opzet, voor expres (Flanders)
• Finnish: tarkoituksellinen (fi), tahallinen (fi)
• French: délibéré (fr)
• Galician: deliberado (gl)
• German: absichtlich (de), bewusst (de), vorsätzlich (de)
• Greek: εσκεμμένος (el) (eskemménos)
• Hebrew: מכוון (mekhuvan)
• Hungarian: szándékos (hu)
• Indonesian: sengaja (id)
• Italian: premeditato (it), intenzionale (it), voluto (it)
• Japanese: 故意の (ja) (こいの, koi no), 作為的 (さくいてき, sakuteki)
• Latin: ultrōneus
• Macedonian: на́мерен (námeren), у́мислен (úmislen)
• Maori: whakaānewanewa (this word is a verb), ngaio, mārika (this qualifier is placed after its associated verb)
• Norman: délibéthé
• Norwegian: med vilje
• Polish: celowy (pl), rozmyślny, świadomy (pl), umyślny (pl), zamierzony (pl)
• Portuguese: intencional (pt), proposital (pt), de propósito (pt), deliberado (pt)
• Romanian: deliberat (ro), intenționat (ro), voit (ro)
• Russian: умы́шленный (ru) (umýšlennyj), преднаме́ренный (ru) (prednamérennyj), наме́ренный (ru) (namérennyj)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: намеран, намјеран

  Roman: nameran, namjeran (sh)

• Slovak: zámerný, úmyselný
• Slovene: nameren
• Spanish: deliberado (es), a propósito (es)
• Swedish: avsiktlig (sv), medveten (sv)
• Tagalog: sinadya
• Ukrainian: навми́сний (navmýsnyj), уми́сний (umýsnyj)

of a person, carefully considering the probable consequences of a step

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 謹慎／谨慎 (zh) (jǐnshèn), 審慎／审慎 (zh) (shěnshèn), 慎重 (zh) (shènzhòng)

• Czech: rozvážný m, váhavý m
• Danish: velovervejet, gennemtænkt
• Finnish: harkitseva (fi)
• German: wohlerwogen, wohlüberlegt (de)
• Hungarian: megfontolt (hu), körültekintő (hu)
• Japanese: 慎重 (ja) (しんちょう, shinchō)
• Macedonian: ра́судлив (rásudliv)
• Maori: hakune
• Norwegian: overveid
• Polish: niespieszny, nieśpieszny, przemyślany (pl), rozważny (pl)
• Portuguese: deliberado (pt)
• Russian: осмотри́тельный (ru) (osmotrítelʹnyj), рассуди́тельный (ru) (rassudítelʹnyj), осторо́жный (ru) (ostoróžnyj)

carefully considered

• Bulgarian: обми́слен (bg) (obmíslen)
• Czech: promyšlený (cs) m
• Danish: velovervejet, gennemtænkt
• Dutch: doordacht (nl), doordachte (nl), weloverwogen (nl)
• Finnish: harkittu (fi)
• French: concerté (fr)
• German: wohlerwogen, wohlüberlegt (de), überlegt (de)
• Hungarian: megfontolt (hu), átgondolt (hu), körültekintő (hu)
• Japanese: 思慮深い (しりょぶかい, shiryobukai)
• Macedonian: о́бмислен (óbmislen), за́мислен (zámislen)
• Maori: hakune, ngaio
• Norwegian: veloverveid
• Polish: przemyślany (pl)
• Portuguese: deliberado (pt)
• Russian: обду́манный (ru) (obdúmannyj), осо́знанный (ru) (osóznannyj), взве́шенный (ru) (vzvéšennyj)
• Spanish: prudente (es)

not hasty or sudden

• Bulgarian: обми́слен (bg) (obmíslen)
• Czech: neuspěchaný m, rozvážný m
• Danish: langsom (da), sindig, rolig (da)
• Finnish: verkkainen (fi), harkittu (fi)
• French: délibéré (fr)
• German: bedacht (de), bedachtsam (de), vorsichtig (de)
• Japanese: 慎重 (ja) (しんちょう, shinchō)
• Maori: mauritau
• Norman: délibéthé
• Polish: niespieszny, nieśpieszny
• Portuguese: calculado (pt)
• Russian: неспе́шный (ru) (nespéšnyj), разме́ренный (ru) (razmérennyj), осо́знанный (ru) (osóznannyj)

Verb

deliberate (third-person singular simple present deliberates, present participle deliberating, simple past and past participle deliberated)

1. (transitive) To consider carefully; to weigh well in the mind.

   It is now time for the jury to deliberate the guilt of the defendant.

2. (intransitive) To consider the reasons for and against anything; to reflect.

Synonyms

• Synonyms: see Thesaurus:ponder

Translations

consider carefully

• Arabic: اِئْتَمَرَ (ar) (iʔtamara)
• Bulgarian: обмислям (bg) (obmisljam)
• Czech: zvažovat (cs)
• Danish: overveje
• Dutch: beraadslagen (nl), overwegen (nl), doordenken (nl)
• Finnish: harkita (fi), puntaroida (fi), pohtia (fi)
• French: délibérer (fr)
• Galician: deliberar (gl)
• German: erwägen (de), beraten (de), abwägen (de), überlegen (de)
• Gothic: 𐌼𐌹𐍄𐍉𐌽 (mitōn)
• Hungarian: megfontol (hu)
• Japanese: 熟慮する (jukuryosuru)
• Latin: dēlīberō
• Maori: whakaraupeka, whakaraupeka, whakarau kakai, ngārehu, ngārahu, kohuki
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: overveie (no), overlegge, drøfte (no)

• Portuguese: deliberar (pt)
• Romanian: delibera (ro), consfătui (ro)
• Russian: обду́мывать (ru) (obdúmyvatʹ)
• Scottish Gaelic: meòraich
• Spanish: deliberar (es)
• Swedish: överlägga (sv), rådslå (sv)

Related terms

• deliberation
• deliberative

Further reading

• “deliberate”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “deliberate”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
• “deliberate”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.

Italian

Verb

deliberate

1. second-person plural present and imperative of deliberare

Latin

Verb

dēlīberāte

1. second-person plural present active imperative of dēlīberō

References

• deliberate in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)

Spanish

Verb

deliberate

1. second-person singular voseo imperative of deliberar combined with te