Also means
to slow down
Usage Note
Ritardare takes avere in compound tenses, whether transitive (ha ritardato la decisione = delayed the decision) or intransitive (il treno ha ritardato = the train was late). The adjectival il treno è in ritardo expresses the state of being late without using this verb.
Examples
"Il volo ha ritardato di un'ora."
Natural Translation
The flight was delayed by an hour.

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