demur

Syllables: de·mur/dɪˈmɜː/US/dɪˈmɜɹ/

demur verb: chiefly followed by to, and sometimes by at or on: to object or be reluctant; to balk, to take exception.

Verb

demur (third-person singular simple present demurs, present participle demurring, simple past and past participle demurred)

(intransitive) Chiefly followed by to, and sometimes by at or on: to object or be reluctant; to balk, to take exception.
- I demur to that statement.
- The personnel demurred at the management’s new scheme.
Synonyms:

oppose, scruple
(intransitive) To submit a demurrer (“motion by a party to a legal action for the immediate or summary judgment of the court on the question of whether, assuming the truth of the matter alleged by the opposite party, it is sufficient in law to sustain the action or defence, and hence whether the party bringing the motion is required to answer or proceed further”).
- He that demurreth in Law confeſſeth all ſuch matters of fact as are well and ſufficiently pleaded.1628, Edw[ard] Coke, “Escuage”, in The First Part of the Institutes of the Lawes of England. […], London: […] [Adam Islip] for the Societe of Stationers, →OCLC, book 2, chapter 3, section 97, folio...
- The plaintiff demurred, that is to say, admitted Sir Edward [Hales]'s plea to be true in fact, but denied that it was a sufficient answer.1849, Thomas Babington Macaulay, chapter VI, in The History of England from the Accession of James II, volume II, London: Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans, →OCLC, page 84
(intransitive, obsolete) To endure, to last.
(intransitive, obsolete) To linger, to tarry.
- The Eele is here, and in this hollow cave / You'll finde, if that our looks on it demurre, / A great wast in the bottome of his furre.1653, Francis Rabelais [i.e., François Rabelais], translated by [Thomas Urquhart, Peter Anthony Motteux], “The Antidoted Fanfreluches: Or, A Galimatia of Extravagant Conceits Found in an Ancient...
(intransitive, obsolete) To remain, to stay.

Synonyms:

abide
(intransitive, obsolete) To suspend judgment or proceedings because of a difficulty or doubt; to put off the conclusion or determination of a matter; to delay, to hesitate, to pause.
- [The Governor of Picardie and Chastilion of Newhaven said] there muſt be much vvaſt of time if the Engliſh ſhould lye at Guiſnes and the French at Ardes, and that the equality vvould be more, and the diſhonour to one of the ſides leſſe, if the entervievv ſhould be vpon the Frontires, then if one...a. 1628 (date written), John Hayward, The Life, and Raigne of King Edward the Sixt, London: […] [Eliot’s Court Press, and J. Lichfield at Oxford?] for Iohn Partridge, […], published 1630, →OCLC, page...
- The doore of grace turnes upon ſmooth hinges vvide opening to ſend out, but ſoon ſhutting to recall the precious offers of mercy to a nation:[…]. This is all vve get by demurring in Gods ſervice.1642 (indicated as 1641), John Milton, “That Those Many Sects and Schismes by Some Suppos’d to be among Us, and that Rebellion in Ireland, ought Not to be a Hindrance, but as Hastning of...
(intransitive, obsolete, rare) To have doubts; to be doubtful.
(figuratively, intransitive, obsolete) Followed by upon: to be captivated or fixated; to dwell on, to linger.
(rare, transitive) To object or take exception to (something).
- I demur the inference from these facts that Homer must have lived at some far later period, when he could have seen such works. Even if he had never seen any representations of life, his imagination might have conceived them.1876, W[illiam] E[wart] Gladstone, “Homer and Hissarlik”, in Homeric Synchronism: An Enquiry into the Time and Place of Homer, London: Macmillan and Co., →OCLC, part I, page 59
(obsolete, transitive) To cause delay to (someone or something); to put off.
- [The Jews believe that God] ſitteth in iudgement, and out of the books taketh reckoning of eurie mans life, and pronounceth ſentence accordingly. […] [T]he third, of the meane ſort, vvhoſe iudgement is demurred vntill the day of Reconciliation, (the tenth of Tiſri,) that if in the meane time they...1613, Samuel Purchas, “[Asia.] The Iewish Passeouer, as They are Now Obserue It, and Other Their Feasts and Fasts.”, in Purchas His Pilgrimage. Or Relations of the World and the Religions Observed in...
- I ask'd the Lavvyer; He demands a Fee, / And then demurres me vvith a vaine delay: […]1635, Fra[ncis] Quarles, “Canto XI. Cant[icles] III. II.”, in Emblemes, London: […] G[eorge] M[iller] and sold at at Iohn Marriots shope […], →OCLC, book IV, stanza 4, page 226
(obsolete, transitive) To have doubts or hesitate about (something).
- VVhat may this mean? Language of Man pronounc't / By Tongue of Brute, and human ſenſe expreſt? / The firſt at leſt of theſe I thought deni'd / To Beaſts, vvhom God on thir Creation-Day / Created mute to all articulat ſound; / The latter I demurre, for in thir looks / Much reaſon, and in thir...1667, John Milton, “Book VIII”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC, signatures...

Noun

demur (plural demurs)

An act of objecting or taking exception; a scruple; also, an exception taken or objection to something.
- If publique Aſſemblies of Divines cannot agree upon a right vvay, private Conventicles of illeterate men, vvill ſoon finde a vvrong. Bivious demurres breed devious reſolutions. Paſſengers to heaven are in haſte, and vvill vvalk one vvay or other.1647, Theodore de la Guard [pseudonym; Nathaniel Ward], The Simple Cobler of Aggawam in America. […], London: […] J[ohn] D[ever] & R[obert] I[bbitson] for Stephen Bowtell, […], →OCLC, page 37
- All my demurrs but double his attacks; / At laſt he vvhiſpers, "Do; and vve go ſnacks."1735 January 13 (Gregorian calendar; indicated as 1734), [Alexander] Pope, An Epistle from Mr. Pope, to Dr. Arbuthnot, London: […] J[ohn] Wright for Lawton Gilliver […], →OCLC, page 4, lines 65–66
(obsolete) An act of continuing; a continuance.
- [G]ood People, living vvithin the Limits of true and lavvful Matrimony, ſhall not by Malice or ill VVill, be ſo long detained and interrupted from their Right, as in times paſt they have been: Neither unjuſt Matrymony ſhall have his unjuſt and inceſtuous demoure and continuance, as by delayes to...1533 (date written), John Strype, “The Princess Mary. The King’s Appeal against the Pope. The Supremacy. Books Writ against the Pope’s Usurpations.”, in Ecclesiastical Memorials; Relating Chiefly to...
(obsolete) An act of lingering or tarrying.
- [A]lbeit his Highneſs had cauſe, as the ſame vvrote, to marvel of your long demor, and lack of expedition of one or other of the things committed to your charge; yet did his Highneſs right vvell perſuade unto himſelf the default not to be in you, but in ſome other cauſe, […]1679, Gilbert Burnet, “[A Collection of Records and Original Papers; with Other Instruments Referred to in the Former History.] Another Dispatch to the Ambassadours to the Same Purpose. A...
(obsolete) An act of remaining or staying; a residence, a stay.
- VVe ſavv this tovvn only in tranſitu, but it merited a little demurr.1673, John Ray, “Of Rome”, in Observations Topographical, Moral, & Physiological; Made in a Journey through part of the Low-countries, Germany, Italy, and France: […], London: […] John Martyn...
Synonyms:

abode
(obsolete) A state of having doubts; a hesitation, a pause.
- The King told me, […] That I ſhould have the Character of Ambaſſador Extraordinary, and the ſame Allovvance I ſhou'd have had in Spain: Upon this Offer I made no Demurr, but immediately accepted it, and ſo my Ambaſſy vvas declar'd in May 1674.1683, William Temple, “Memoirs of what Pass’d in Christendom, from the War Begun 1672, to the Peace Concluded 1679. Chapter I.”, in The Works of Sir William Temple, […], volume I, London: […] J....
(obsolete) Synonym of demurrer (“a motion by a party to a legal action for the immediate or summary judgment of the court on the question of whether, assuming the truth of the matter alleged by the opposite party, it is sufficient in law to sustain the action or defence, and hence whether the party bringing the motion is required to answer or proceed further”).
- [W]ith Rejoinders and Replies, / Long Bills, and Anſvvers, ſtuft vvith Lies, / Demurr, Imparlance, and Eſſoign, / The Parties ne'er could Iſſue join: / For Sixteen Years the Cauſe vvas ſpun, / And then ſtood vvhere it firſt begun.1726, [Jonathan Swift], Cadenus and Vanessa. A Poem, London: […] J. Roberts […], →OCLC, page 9
Synonyms:

demurrer

demur meaning in Tamil, Urdu, Bengali and Malayalam

demur in Bengali

আপত্তি করা, দ্বিধা প্রকাশ করা, কোনো প্রস্তাবে অসম্মতি জানানো

demur in Malayalam

സംശയം പ്രകടിപ്പിക്കുക, ശങ്കിച്ചു നിൽക്കുക, തടസ്സം പറയുക, എതിർപ്പു പ്രകടപ്പിക്കുക

More languagesFewer languages

demur in Kannada: ಅನಾಸಕ್ತಿ ತೋರು, ಅಡ್ಡಿತರು, ಅನುಮಾನಪಡು, ಆಕ್ಷೇಪಣೆ ಮಾಡು

Examples of demur in a sentence

The Caliph demurred hereat, as counting ſuch a geſture a diminution to his State; […]1639, Thomas Fuller, “Sanar Imploreth the Aid of King Almerick; a Solemn Agreement Made betwixt Them, and Ratified by the Magnificent...
My proceſs vvas alvvays very ſimple—in their younger days, 'tvvas 'Jack, do this;'—if he demur'd—I knock'd him dovvn—and if he grumbled at that—I alvvays ſent him out of the room.1775 January 17 (first performance), [Richard Brinsley Sheridan], The Rivals, a Comedy. […], London: […] John Wilkie, […], published 1775...
Antoine demurred, of course, but did at last consent to let me pick red currants.1920, [Elizabeth von Arnim], “September 6th”, in In the Mountains, 1st American edition, Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, Page & Company...
Vpon this rubbe the Engliſh Embaſſadors thought fit to demurre, and ſo ſent into England to receiue directions from the Lords of the counſaile.a. 1628 (date written), John Hayward, The Life, and Raigne of King Edward the Sixt, London: […] [Eliot’s Court Press, and J. Lichfield at...

Synonyms of demur

All synonyms of demur

Forms of demur

Verb
third-person singular present	demurs
present participle	demurring
past participle	demurred
past	demurred
second-person singular present (archaic)	demurrest
second-person singular past (archaic)	demurredst
third-person singular present (archaic)	demurreth
Noun
plural	demurs

Origin of demur

From Middle English demuren (“to delay; to linger; to remain (in office); to keep, retain (?)”), from Anglo-Norman demorer and Old French demorer, demourer (“to remain, stay”) (modern French demeurer), from Vulgar Latin dēmorāre, from Latin dēmorārī, the present active infinitive of Latin dēmoror (“to delay, detain; to linger, tarry”), from de- (intensifying prefix) + moror (“to delay, detain; to hinder, impede; to linger, loiter”) (from mora (“a delay; hindrance, obstacle”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(s)mer- (“to fall into thinking; to remember”), probably referring to a time for thinking) + -or (variant of -ō (suffix forming regular first-conjugation verbs)).

From Middle English demure, demore (“a delay, demur; a sojourn, stay”), from Old French demure, demore, demuere (“a delay, demur”) (modern French demeure), from Old French demorer, demourer (verb): see etymology 1.

Words formed from demur

Words that rhyme with demur

48 more rhymesFewer rhymes

Questions about demur

What does demur mean?: Demur means chiefly followed by to, and sometimes by at or on: to object or be reluctant; to balk, to take exception.
What is demur in Tamil?: Demur in Tamil is தடை கூறு, தயக்கம் காட்டு. See Demur meaning in Tamil.
How do you use demur in a sentence?: The Caliph demurred hereat, as counting ſuch a geſture a diminution to his State; […]
What part of speech is demur?: Demur can be a verb or a noun.
How do you pronounce demur?: Demur is pronounced /dɪˈmɜː/ (UK).
What is the past tense of demur?: The past tense of demur is demurred.

Words near demur in the dictionary

Adapted from Wiktionary: demur (page history and authors); demur (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors); demur (Urdu Wiktionary) (page history and authors); demur (Bengali Wiktionary) (page history and authors); demur (Malayalam Wiktionary) (page history and authors); demur (Kannada Wiktionary) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-demur.wav.

Cite this entry: “demur.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/demur. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.