Vertraagen

Vertraagen is a Dutch verb that is commonly understood as to slow down or to delay something. In standard Dutch, the preferred form for this meaning is vertragen; ver- + traag stems from a combination of a prefix and the adjective traag (slow). The spelling vertragen is the form typically found in contemporary writings, while ver taagen may appear as a regional or historic variant.

The concept behind vertraagen—whether intentional or accidental—covers a broad range of situations. It can refer to delaying a procedure or decision, reducing the speed of a machine or vehicle, or slowing the progression of a process such as production, planning, or transport. In everyday use, vertragen often implies a conscious act to postpone or decelerate. In technical contexts, the related noun vertraging denotes the delay or lag itself, for example in transportation schedules, project timelines, or signal processing where latency is described as vertraging.

Forms and related terms include the noun vertraging (delay), the adjective vertraagd (slowed or delayed), and phrases describing delay times or causes. The word is used across Dutch-speaking regions, with minor regional preferences in spelling or usage. In many contexts, vertraging is the more common term for the concept of a delay, while vertraagen as a verb remains the standard way to express the act of causing that delay.

See also: Vertraging, vertraagd, vertragingstijd.