deferential
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"The tech industry has been given deferential treatment - I think we're seeing that start to change."
From BBC • Jan. 26, 2026
"He was intensely serious but showed flashes of humour. He encouraged debate although his officers were deferential," Pike wrote in a 2019 book.
From Barron's • Jan. 12, 2026
Still, the justices have been deferential to presidential powers and the outcome is uncertain.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 4, 2025
But it’s worth stressing the takeaway: Redford was always deferential to his leading women, all of whom bloomed and ached in his absence.
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 16, 2025
In other people’s presence I was, as formerly, deferential and quiet; any other line of conduct being uncalled for: it was only in the evening conferences I thus thwarted and afflicted him.
From "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Brontë
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Vocabulary lists containing deferential
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