behavior that shows that you respect someone or something The women wore veils in deference to the customs of the country. The flags were lowered out of deference to the bereaved family.
NAmE//ˌdɛfəˈrɛnʃl//
adjective NAmE//ˌdɛfəˈrɛnʃəli//
adverbSee deference in the Oxford Advanced Learner's DictionaryCheck pronunciation: deference