The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Delay \De*lay"\, n.; pl. Delays. [F. d['e]lai, fr. OF. deleer
   to delay, or fr. L. dilatum, which, though really from a
   different root, is used in Latin only as a p. p. neut. of
   differre to carry apart, defer, delay. See Tolerate, and
   cf. Differ, Delay, v.]
   A putting off or deferring; procrastination; lingering
   inactivity; stop; detention; hindrance.
   [1913 Webster]

         Without any delay, on the morrow I sat on the judgment
         seat.                                    --Acts xxv.
                                                  17.
   [1913 Webster]

         The government ought to be settled without the delay of
         a day.                                   --Macaulay.
   [1913 Webster]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Delay \De*lay"\, v. i.
   To move slowly; to stop for a time; to linger; to tarry.
   [1913 Webster]

         There seem to be certain bounds to the quickness and
         slowness of the succession of those ideas, . . . beyond
         which they can neither delay nor hasten. --Locke.
   [1913 Webster]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Delay \De*lay"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Delayed; p. pr. & vb. n.
   Delaying.] [OF. deleer, delaier, fr. the noun d['e]lai, or
   directly fr. L. dilatare to enlarge, dilate, in LL., to put
   off. See Delay, n., and cf. Delate, 1st Defer,
   Dilate.]
   1. To put off; to defer; to procrastinate; to prolong the
      time of or before.
      [1913 Webster]

            My lord delayeth his coming.          --Matt. xxiv.
                                                  48.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. To retard; to stop, detain, or hinder, for a time; to
      retard the motion, or time of arrival, of; as, the mail is
      delayed by a heavy fall of snow.
      [1913 Webster]

            Thyrsis! whose artful strains have oft delayed
            The huddling brook to hear his madrigal. --Milton.
      [1913 Webster]

   3. To allay; to temper. [Obs.]
      [1913 Webster]

            The watery showers delay the raging wind. --Surrey.
      [1913 Webster]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

delay
    n 1: time during which some action is awaited; "instant replay
         caused too long a delay"; "he ordered a hold in the action"
         [syn: delay, hold, time lag, postponement, wait]
    2: the act of delaying; inactivity resulting in something being
       put off until a later time [syn: delay, holdup]
    v 1: cause to be slowed down or delayed; "Traffic was delayed by
         the bad weather"; "she delayed the work that she didn't
         want to perform" [syn: delay, detain, hold up] [ant:
         hurry, rush]
    2: act later than planned, scheduled, or required; "Don't delay
       your application to graduate school or else it won't be
       considered"
    3: stop or halt; "Please stay the bloodshed!" [syn: stay,
       detain, delay]
    4: slow the growth or development of; "The brain damage will
       retard the child's language development" [syn: check,
       retard, delay]

Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0:

268 Moby Thesaurus words for "delay":
   abide, adjourn, afterthought, arrest, arrestation, arrestment,
   await, backpedal, backwater, be a sideliner, be still, bide,
   bide the issue, bind, block, blockage, blocking, bog down,
   bottle up, brake, bureaucratic delay, check, clip the wings,
   clogging, closing up, closure, coast, confine, constriction,
   continue, countercheck, cramp, curb, dally, dam up, damp, dampen,
   dawdle, dawdling, decelerate, deceleration, defer, deferment,
   deferral, delayage, delayed reaction, detain, detainment,
   detention, dilly, dillydally, do nothing, double take, drag,
   drag along, drag out, dragging, draw rein, drift, drone, ease off,
   ease up, ease-off, ease-up, extend, falter, fixation, flag,
   flagging, foot-dragging, gap, goof off, halt, hampering,
   hang about, hang around, hang back, hang fire, hang up, hang-up,
   hesitate, hiatus, hibernate, hinder, hindering, hindrance,
   hold back, hold everything, hold in check, hold off, hold on,
   hold over, hold up, hold your horses, hold-up, holdback, holdup,
   idle, impede, impediment, inhibit, inhibition, interference,
   interim, interlude, intermeddle, intermit, interrupt, interruption,
   interval, intervene, jam, keep, keep back, keep in check, lacuna,
   lag, lag behind, lagging, lay aside, lay away, lay by, lay over,
   let, let down, let up, letdown, letup, lie dormant, linger, logjam,
   loiter, loitering, lollygag, lose ground, lose momentum,
   lose speed, lull, make late, mark time, meddle, minus acceleration,
   mire, moderate, moratorium, mull, negativism, not budge, not stir,
   nuisance value, obstruct, obstruction, obstructionism, occlusion,
   oppose, opposition, paperasserie, pause, pigeonhole, poke,
   poke along, postpone, postponement, procrastinate, prolong,
   prorogate, prorogue, protract, push aside, put aside, put away,
   put in mothballs, put off, put on ice, recess, red tape,
   red-tapeism, red-tapery, reef, rein in, relax, repress, repression,
   reprieve, reserve, resist, resistance, respite, rest, restrain,
   restraint, restriction, retard, retardance, retardation,
   retardment, scotch, set aside, set back, set by, setback, shelve,
   shift off, shilly-shally, shilly-shallying, sideline, sit back,
   sit it out, sit tight, sit up, slack off, slack up, slack-up,
   slacken, slackening, sleep on, slow, slow down, slow up, slow-up,
   slowdown, slowing, slowing down, slowness, slowup, snub, squeeze,
   stagnate, stall, stand over, stave off, stay, stay of execution,
   stay up, stick around, stop, stoppage, store, stow, stranglehold,
   stretch out, stricture, suppress, suppression, suspend, suspension,
   table, table the motion, take a recess, take in sail, take time,
   tarry, tarrying, temporize, throttle down, tie-up, time lag, trail,
   vacillate, vegetate, wait, wait a minute, wait and see, waiting,
   waive, waste time, watch and wait, waver



Bouvier's Law Dictionary, Revised 6th Ed (1856):

DELAY, civil law. The time allowed either by law or by agreement of the
parties to do something.
     2. The law allows a delay, for a party who has been summoned to appear,
to make defence, to appeal; it admits of a delay during which and action may
be brought, certain rights exercised, and the like.
     3. By the agreement of the parties there may be a delay in the payment
of a  debt, the fulfillment of a contract, &c. Vide Code, 3, 11, 4; Nov. 69,
c. 2 Merl. Rep. h