The word for today is…

deference (noun) – respect and esteem due a superior or an elder

Source : Merriam -Webster

Etymology : The words deference and defer both derive from the Latin deferre, which means “to bring down” or “to carry away.” At the same time you might also hear that defer traces to the Latin differre, which means “to postpone” or “to differ.” Which root is right? Both. That’s because English has two verbs, or homographs, spelled defer. One means “to submit or delegate to another” (as in “I defer to your greater expertise”). That’s the one that is closely related to deference and that comes from deferre. The other means “to put off or delay” (as in “we decided to defer the decision until next month”); that second defer derives from differre.

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David is a retired surgeon originally from London who came to New Zealand twenty-seven years ago after being delayed in Singapore for thirteen years on leaving the UK. He was coerced into studying Latin...