The procrastination meaning is the habit or act of delaying something you need to do, often choosing an easier or more pleasant activity instead, even though you know the delay may cause trouble later. Scrolling your phone while an assignment waits is a classic case.
It is one of those words almost everyone recognizes in themselves. Ahead: a clear definition of procrastination, the Latin roots that literally mean for tomorrow, real sentences, its word family and the opposite of procrastination.
Entry at a glance
Meaning
Needless delay of a task, often against your own interestPart of speech
Noun (usually uncountable)Pronunciation
proh-kras-tuh-NAY-shunWord forms
procrastinate (verb), procrastinator (person), procrastinatingOrigin
Latin procrastinare, from pro- forward and crastinus of tomorrowOpposite
Promptness, diligence, getting on with itRegister
Neutral; common at school and work
What does procrastination mean, exactly?
Not every delay counts. Waiting to paint a fence until the rain stops is sensible planning. Procrastination is delay that is needless: you could start, you mean to start, and yet you choose something else while the task hangs over you.
Three things usually show up together:
- a task you intend to do,
- a choice to put it off without a good reason,
- an awareness that waiting may make things harder or more stressful.
People who study the habit often describe it less as poor time management and more as a way of avoiding unpleasant feelings, such as boredom, doubt or fear of failing.
Procrastination meaning seen in daily life
- Months of procrastination meant he filed his taxes on the very last evening.
- She calls cleaning the whole fridge her favorite form of procrastination before exams.
- Our manager asked us to stop procrastinating and send the client a reply today.
- A lot of procrastination comes from not knowing where to begin.
- I procrastinated so long on booking tickets that the cheap seats were gone.
Roots in a Latin word for tomorrow
English took the noun from French in the sixteenth century. It goes back to Latin procrastinatio, from the verb procrastinare, to postpone until tomorrow. That verb joins pro-, meaning forward, and crastinus, meaning belonging to tomorrow, from cras, tomorrow. So the word carries its own little joke: to procrastinate is to push a job forward into tomorrow, again and again.
The word family and how to use it
The verb is procrastinate, usually without an object: I tend to procrastinate. To name what you are avoiding, add on or over: procrastinate on the report. Someone with the habit is a procrastinator, and people sometimes joke that they are a chronic procrastinator or a professional procrastinator.
Natural pairings with the noun: beat procrastination, a habit of procrastination, endless procrastination, procrastination sets in. The noun is rarely made plural.
Opposite of procrastination
There is no single perfect opposite, so the best word depends on what you want to stress.
| Word | What it highlights |
|---|---|
| Promptness | Doing things quickly and on time |
| Diligence | Steady, careful effort |
| Discipline | Doing what is needed even without the mood for it |
| Precrastination | A newer, informal term for rushing to finish tasks too early |
Close words on the same side include dawdling (moving slowly), stalling (delaying on purpose, often to gain time) and dithering (unable to decide). Procrastination is broader than all three.
Is procrastination the same as laziness?
Not really. A lazy person may not care about the task. A procrastinator usually cares a great deal, which is why the delay feels uncomfortable. Many busy, hard working people procrastinate on one particular job, such as a hard phone call, while staying productive in every other area. That is why advice on the topic often focuses on making the first step tiny, for example writing just one sentence or opening the file. You will find more words about habits and moods on the words for people and feelings hub, sorted by mood and trait.
Frequently asked questions
How would you define procrastination for a child?
Procrastination means putting off something you should do, even though delaying it is likely to cause problems. It is a choice to do something else first, again and again.
Is procrastination a bad thing?
It usually has costs, such as stress, rushed work and missed chances. Some people say a short delay helps them think, but most uses of the word describe a habit people want to break.
How do you pronounce procrastination?
It sounds like proh-kras-tuh-NAY-shun. The NAY part is strongest. In the verb procrastinate, the beat moves to KRAS: proh-KRAS-tuh-nayt.
What do you call someone who procrastinates?
That person is a procrastinator. People often add a playful word in front, as in a lifelong procrastinator.
What is the opposite of procrastination?
Promptness is the closest everyday opposite. Diligence and self-discipline also work. Researchers have used precrastination for the habit of starting tasks too early.
Can procrastination be a sign of something else?
Sometimes it is linked with stress, low mood or attention difficulties. If putting things off seriously affects your life, a chat with a doctor or trained counselor is a sensible step.