anticipation

American  

[an-tis-uh-pey-shuhn] / ænˌtɪs əˈpeɪ ʃən /

noun

1. the act of anticipating or the state of being anticipated.

2. realization in advance; foretaste.

3. expectation or hope.

4. previous notion; slight previous impression.

5. intuition, foreknowledge, or prescience.

6. Law. a premature withdrawal or assignment of money from a trust estate.

7. Music. a tone introduced in advance of its harmony so that it sounds against the preceding chord.

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anticipation British  

/ ænˌtɪsɪˈpeɪʃən /

noun

1. the act of anticipating; expectation, premonition, or foresight

2. the act of taking or dealing with funds before they are legally available or due

3. music an unstressed, usually short note introduced before a downbeat and harmonically related to the chord immediately following it Compare suspension

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Other Word Forms

• nonanticipation
  noun

Etymology

Origin of anticipation

First recorded in 1540–50; from Middle French, from Latin anticipātiōn-, stem of anticipātiō “innate notion, preconception,” from anticipāt(us) “taken before, anticipated” (past participle of anticipāre “to take before”; see anticipate) + -iō -ion

Explanation

Anticipation is excitement, waiting eagerly for something you know is going to happen. Someone who has just proposed marriage waits in anticipation for a positive reply. Anticipation can be a nervous expectation, like when the birthday party waited in anticipation for Elmer to walk in so they could surprise him. However, anticipation can also mean to be like a Boy Scout: prepared. The weather center's anticipation of the storm prevented anyone from getting hurt. It can refer to something you'd like to prevent from happening, such as "the anticipation of a tax increase next year." Either way, it's a way of looking ahead, just like its Latin roots which mean "to take care of ahead of time."

Example Sentences

But the anticipation made the Court’s 6-3 decision in Louisiana v.

From Salon • May 6, 2026

There was initially a lot of anticipation over how relations would play out between Robert Francis Prevost and Trump -- two very different world leaders at odds over many issues.

From Barron's • May 6, 2026

“Widow’s Bay” reaches deep into that bag of tropes, but it’s all part of the game; familiarity breeds anticipation, which breeds fear.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 28, 2026

Carney said the sovereign-wealth fund will be pursuing equity returns from projects, whereas the infrastructure bank is focused on loans in anticipation of being paid back with interest.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 27, 2026

In those months of anticipation before we had left Romania, my mind had brimmed with dreams of the future.

From "The City Beautiful" by Aden Polydoros

Related Words

• apprehension
• hope
• joy
• prospect