defer to
phrasal verb
deferred to; deferring to; defers to
1
: to allow (someone else) to decide or choose something
You have more experience with this, so I'm going to defer to you.
deferring to the experts
2
defer to (something)
: to agree to follow (someone else's decision, a tradition, etc.)
The court defers to precedent in cases like these.
He deferred to his parents' wishes.
Examples of defer to in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
As such, the Thunder’s rights to this pick will be deferred to the 2026 NBA Draft with top-eight protections.
—
Nick Crain, Forbes.com, 29 Mar. 2025
The Department of Homeland Security declined to comment on the University of Minnesota case, deferring to ICE, which did not immediately respond to CNN’s request for comment.
—Kelly Murray, CNN Money, 29 Mar. 2025
Instead of running up and down an ever-growing list of names, defer to an expert.
—Zoey Lyttle, People.com, 27 Mar. 2025
In 2022, the NCAA adopted a sport-by-sport approach for transgender athletes, deferring to policies set by each sport’s national governing body, subject to review and recommendation by an NCAA committee.
—Joe Kottke, NBC news, 22 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for defer to
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Nick Crain, Forbes.com, 29 Mar. 2025
The Department of Homeland Security declined to comment on the University of Minnesota case, deferring to ICE, which did not immediately respond to CNN’s request for comment.
—Kelly Murray, CNN Money, 29 Mar. 2025
Instead of running up and down an ever-growing list of names, defer to an expert.
—Zoey Lyttle, People.com, 27 Mar. 2025
In 2022, the NCAA adopted a sport-by-sport approach for transgender athletes, deferring to policies set by each sport’s national governing body, subject to review and recommendation by an NCAA committee.
—Joe Kottke, NBC news, 22 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for defer to
Cite this Entry
“Defer to.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/defer%20to. Accessed 1 Apr. 2025.
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