await
Americanverb (used with object)
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to wait for; expect; look for.
He is still awaiting an answer.
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to be in store for; be imminent.
A pleasant surprise awaits her in today's mail.
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Obsolete. to lie in wait for.
verb (used without object)
verb
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(tr) to wait for; expect
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(tr) to be in store for
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(intr) to wait, esp with expectation
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obsolete (tr) to wait for in order to ambush
Usage
What are other ways to say await?
To await something is to wait for it or look for it expectantly. How is await different from anticipate, hope, and expect? Find out on Thesaurus.com.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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awaitsimple
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awaitssimple
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have awaitedperfect
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has awaitedperfect
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am awaitingprogressive
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are awaitingprogressive
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is awaitingprogressive
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have been awaitingperfect progressive
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has been awaitingperfect progressive
Past
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awaitedsimple
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had awaitedperfect
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was awaitingprogressive
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were awaitingprogressive
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had been awaitingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of await
First recorded in 1225–75; Middle English awaiten, from Old North French awaitier (Old French aguaitier ), equivalent to a- a- 5 + waitier wait
Explanation
To await is to anticipate or look forward to something. If you're hoping to get a letter from your pen pal, you'll eagerly await the mail carrier's arrival every afternoon. When you await a phone call, you might sit by the telephone at home or keep your cell phone in your hand. A prisoner who awaits trial is biding his time until his case comes before a judge. Sometimes await implies that some particular outcome is in store for someone: "A terrible surprise awaits her, when she gets home and sees that her dog ate the sofa."
Vocabulary lists containing await
Vocabulary from Readings 4, Unit 1
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Vocabulary from Readings 4, Unit 1
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
This is not the freezer as bunker, or the freezer as punishment, or the freezer as the place where leftovers go to await their eventual quiet disposal.
From Salon • Jul. 11, 2026
Four huge columns await the delivery of high pressure gas from 5km below the platform, all but 100m of which is under the seabed.
From BBC • Jul. 8, 2026
Now we await a reprise of her jeans and white T-shirt red carpet look from last year.
From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 8, 2026
Even ongoing matches fail to stop them gathering on a nearby terrace to eye up what treats await below.
From Barron's • Jul. 1, 2026
And so, with trepidation, I await my full recovery.
From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
