expectancy

American  

[ik-spek-tuhn-see] / ɪkˈspɛk tən si /

Also expectance

noun

expectancies plural

1. the quality or state of expecting; expectation; anticipatory belief or desire.

2. the state of being expected.

3. an object of expectation; something expected.

---

expectancy British  

/ ɪkˈspɛktənsɪ /

noun

1. something expected, esp on the basis of a norm or average

   his life expectancy was 30 years

2. anticipation; expectation

3. the prospect of a future interest or possession, esp in property

   an estate in expectancy

---

Etymology

Origin of expectancy

From the Medieval Latin word ex(s)pectantia, dating back to 1590–1600. See expectant, -ancy

Explanation

Expectancy is the state of thinking (or hoping) that something will happen. You can sense the expectancy in the crowd just before your favorite band takes the stage. Use this word to talk about a sense of anticipation, like your little brother's expectancy every year on his birthday that someone will throw him a surprise party. It's also used to mean "an expected amount," especially in the context of life expectancy, or the average length of a person's life: "Typically, women have a longer life expectancy than men do." Expectancy is from expect, from a Latin root meaning "look for."

Example Sentences

Average male life expectancy in Russia today is about 68 years, according to official statistics, compared with roughly 76 in the U.S. and over 80 across much of Western Europe.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 29, 2026

Dr. Hirota has published 56 papers, and his work connects molecular biology with nutrition in pursuit of better health care solutions and longer healthy life expectancy.

From Science Daily • May 27, 2026

Those schemes became expensive for employers to sustain as life expectancy improved, and they all but died out in the private sector in the 2000s.

From BBC • May 17, 2026

I was given three to four months life expectancy in mid-December.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 7, 2026

In other lands they would have greeted him with kind words; but now they stood silent, each feeling a strange expectancy: something was approaching that held a hidden power — or menace.

From "The Two Towers" by J. R. R. Tolkien