The phrase "act of deference" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used to describe a behavior or gesture that shows respect or submission to someone else's wishes or opinions.
Example: "In an act of deference, she chose to remain silent during the meeting, allowing her colleagues to express their views first."
Alternatives: "gesture of respect" or "show of submission".
The fitter's relationship with their client is a balancing act of deference and authority.
Eventually, a window opened up for us to discuss the compensation for my act of deference.
Abbas's people made clear that the New York encounter was a meeting, no more, an act of deference to a US president who aroused such high hopes.
As far as I can tell, Morris's effort, in his music-visualization pieces, simply to reflect the score is not an evasion of emotion; it is an act of deference to the emotion contained in the music.
For a YouTube star, there may be no greater act of deference — of contrition — than ceding the close-up to others; in our era of unrepentant mugging, it is as close to self-flagellation as an artist can reasonably get.
Strange business abounds, involving pokes in the ribs, slaps in the face, living-room décor, bouts of impotence, strange modern art, and Hungarian clients (remember the word "Egesegedre!," pronounced, Egg-e-sheg-e-dra), and the somewhat mechanistic and unsatisfying dénouement is itself an act of deference to the insolubly vast problems it purports to resolve.
The suppression of paganism, by law and by the sporadic destruction of pagan shrines, is balanced by particular acts of deference.
Carter devotes much space in his book to dissecting the special rituals – the "clubrooms", team court sessions, and tiny acts of deference, all designed to reinforce the team's sense of discipline and solidarity – that make the All Blacks "way of living" so successful.
Handing her the diploma was partly an act of filial deference, and mostly acknowledgement of an inside joke.
He acted out of deference for public opinion, fearing that the public would condemn a military response.
She ascribes Cope's deference to his father's beliefs as an act of respect or a measure to retain his father's financial support.
