Spanish for “Let’s postpone this”

Introduction

Have you ever found yourself in a situation where you needed to delay a meeting, reschedule plans, or push back a deadline while speaking Spanish? Knowing how to politely postpone something is an essential communication skill that goes beyond basic textbook Spanish. This comprehensive guide will teach you multiple ways to express postponement in Spanish, from formal business settings to casual conversations with friends.

The Most Common Way to Say Let’s Postpone This

The most straightforward translation for postponing something in Spanish is pospongamos esto. This phrase comes from the verb posponer, which directly means to postpone or delay. When you use pospongamos, you’re using the first-person plural subjunctive form, which creates a suggestion similar to saying let’s in English.

For example:
Pospongamos la reunión hasta la próxima semana.
Let’s postpone the meeting until next week.

This phrase works well in professional environments and maintains a neutral, respectful tone. However, Spanish speakers have many other options depending on the context and relationship with the person they’re addressing.

Alternative Verbs for Postponing in Spanish

Using Aplazar for Formal Situations

Aplazar is another excellent verb that means to postpone or defer. This word carries a slightly more formal tone than posponer and is frequently used in business, academic, and official contexts. The subjunctive form aplazamos functions similarly to pospongamos.

Example sentences:
Aplazamos el proyecto hasta el próximo trimestre.
Let’s postpone the project until next quarter.

Necesitamos aplazar la presentación.
We need to postpone the presentation.

Diferir as a Professional Alternative

Diferir means to defer or postpone and appears primarily in formal writing and professional speech. While less common in everyday conversation, understanding diferir helps you recognize it in business correspondence and official documents.

Example:
Propongo que difiramos esta decisión.
I propose that we postpone this decision.

Casual Ways to Postpone Plans

Dejar Para Después or Dejar Para Más Tarde

In informal situations with friends or family, Spanish speakers often use dejar para después or dejar para más tarde, which literally translate to leave for later. These expressions feel more natural in casual conversation than formal verbs like posponer or aplazar.

Casual examples:
Mejor dejamos esto para después.
Better we leave this for later.

¿Podemos dejar la conversación para más tarde?
Can we leave the conversation for later?

Using Postergar in Latin American Spanish

Postergar is widely used throughout Latin America to mean postpone or put off. While it exists in European Spanish, it’s much more common in countries like Mexico, Argentina, Colombia, and Chile. The meaning is essentially the same as posponer.

Latin American examples:
Vamos a postergar la fiesta hasta el sábado.
We’re going to postpone the party until Saturday.

No podemos postergar esto más tiempo.
We can’t postpone this any longer.

Polite Phrases for Postponing Meetings and Appointments

When you need to reschedule something professionally, adding polite language makes your request more acceptable. Here are complete phrases that Spanish speakers use in real-world situations:

¿Podríamos posponer la reunión?
Could we postpone the meeting?

This question format with podríamos (could we) adds politeness and makes your suggestion feel collaborative rather than demanding.

Me gustaría reprogramar nuestra cita.
I would like to reschedule our appointment.

The verb reprogramar specifically means to reschedule and works perfectly for appointments, meetings, and planned events.

¿Sería posible mover la fecha?
Would it be possible to move the date?

Using sería posible (would it be possible) shows respect for the other person’s time and schedule.

Explaining Why You Need to Postpone

Simply asking to postpone something can seem abrupt. Spanish speakers typically include a brief explanation, which demonstrates consideration and maintains good relationships. Here are useful phrases to combine with postponement requests:

Ha surgido un inconveniente
An inconvenience has come up

This neutral phrase explains that something unexpected happened without going into excessive detail.

Tengo un compromiso previo
I have a previous commitment

This phrase politely indicates you’re already obligated elsewhere.

Complete example:
Lo siento, pero ha surgido un inconveniente. ¿Podríamos posponer la reunión hasta mañana?
I’m sorry, but an inconvenience has come up. Could we postpone the meeting until tomorrow?

Regional Variations and Cultural Considerations

Spanish varies significantly across different countries and regions. While posponer works universally, certain preferences exist depending on location.

In Spain, you’ll frequently hear retrasar, which means to delay. Spanish professionals might say retrasamos la reunión instead of pospongamos la reunión, though both are perfectly acceptable.

In Mexico and Central America, postergar dominates everyday speech. Mexicans often prefer dejarlo para otro día (leave it for another day) in casual contexts.

Argentina and Uruguay frequently use correr when talking about moving dates or appointments. For example, corremos la reunión para el martes means we’re moving the meeting to Tuesday.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

English speakers learning Spanish often make predictable errors when trying to express postponement. Being aware of these helps you sound more natural.

Don’t Directly Translate Let’s

While Spanish does have words like vamos that can mean let’s, the subjunctive form of verbs naturally creates the same meaning. Saying vamos a posponer sounds less natural than simply pospongamos in most contexts.

Watch Your Verb Conjugations

The subjunctive mood is essential for suggestions in Spanish. Make sure you’re using pospongamos (we postpone – subjunctive) rather than posponemos (we postpone – indicative) when making a suggestion.

Match Formality to Context

Using aplazar with close friends might sound overly formal and stiff, while dejar para después in a business email appears too casual. Pay attention to your relationship with the person and the setting.

Practical Phrases for Different Situations

Here are ready-to-use phrases organized by context that you can incorporate immediately into your Spanish conversations:

Business contexts:
Propongo que aplazamos esta discusión hasta tener más información.
I propose we postpone this discussion until we have more information.

Debido a circunstancias imprevistas, necesitamos reprogramar.
Due to unforeseen circumstances, we need to reschedule.

Casual situations:
¿Qué te parece si lo dejamos para después?
How about if we leave it for later?

Mejor hablamos de esto otro día.
Better we talk about this another day.

Academic settings:
¿Podemos posponer el examen hasta la semana que viene?
Can we postpone the exam until next week?

El profesor decidió aplazar la fecha de entrega.
The professor decided to postpone the due date.

Conclusion

Mastering the art of postponing plans in Spanish opens doors to more natural, confident communication. Whether you choose posponer, aplazar, postergar, or dejar para después, understanding the nuances helps you adapt to any situation. Remember that combining these phrases with polite expressions and brief explanations demonstrates cultural awareness and respect for others’ time, making you a more effective Spanish communicator.