expectant
Americanadjective
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having expectations; expecting.
an excited, expectant audience.
-
pregnant; expecting.
an expectant mother.
-
characterized by expectations.
an expectant attitude.
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in expectation; expected; prospective.
an expectant fortune.
noun
adjective
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expecting, anticipating, or hopeful
an expectant glance
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having expectations, esp of possession of something or prosperity
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pregnant
an expectant mother
noun
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a person who expects something
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obsolete a candidate for office, esp for ecclesiastical preferment
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of expectant
1350–1400; Middle English < Latin expectant- (stem of expectāns ), present participle of expectāre to expect; see -ant
Explanation
If you're expectant, you're waiting excitedly for something. A throng of expectant fans might wait outside a concert venue, hoping for a glimpse of the band arriving. When someone's expectant, they are anticipating something good, eagerly awaiting it. When you're hoping for a call, your expectant glance might land on your cell phone every five minutes, and if you're especially hungry for lunch, you might keep an expectant eye on the clock during math class. Because pregnant women tend to be excitedly waiting for a baby to be born, they're also commonly described as expectant.
Vocabulary lists containing expectant
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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.
For $2.50, an expectant mother can receive micronutrient supplements that prevent stunting and lifelong cognitive damage in her child—returning nearly $100 of long-term benefits per child.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 1, 2026
Their relationship with Max is also much more personal: Anna was Max’s pregnant lawyer in the trial where Max stood accused of killing his expectant wife, while Tom was the prosecutor.
From Salon ● Jul. 17, 2026
The affected data include childhood immunization rates against diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, polio, measles, mumps and rubella, hepatitis, chicken pox and flu; and rates for 13 year olds and expectant mothers.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 3, 2026
On a brilliant night under the lights in front of a jubilant and expectant crowd, England overcame their recent struggles in pressure matches in the biggest sign of improvement under coach Charlotte Edwards to date.
From BBC ● Jul. 2, 2026
From there I could look out over the basin, a patchwork of expectant fields stretching to Buck’s Peak.
From "Educated" by Tara Westover
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
