\Re*tard"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Retarded}; p. pr. & vb.
n. {Retarding}.] [L. retardare, retardatum; pref. re- re- +
tardare to make slow, to delay, fr. tardus slow: cf. F.
retarder. See {Tardy}.]
1. To keep delaying; to continue to hinder; to prevent from
   progress; to render more slow in progress; to impede; to
   hinder; as, to retard the march of an army; to retard the
   motion of a ship; -- opposed to {accelerate}.
2. To put off; to postpone; as, to retard the attacks of old
   age; to retard a rupture between nations.
Syn: To impede; hinder; obstruct; detain; delay;
     procrastinate; postpone; defer.

\Re*tard"\, v. i.
To stay back. [Obs.] --Sir. T. Browne.

\Re*tard"\, n.
Retardation; delay.
{Retard, or Age}, {of the tide}, the interval between the
   transit of the moon at which a tide originates and the
   appearance of the tide itself. It is found, in general,
   that any particular tide is not principally due to the
   moon's transit immediately proceeding, but to a transit
   which has occured some time before, and which is said to
   correspond to it. The retard of the tide is thus
   distinguished from the lunitidal interval. See under
   {Retardation}. --Ham. Nav. Encyc.