in waiting

Idioms  

1. In attendance, especially on a royal personage. For example, The prelates who were in waiting asked him to take the last rites. This usage has become less common with the diminution of royalty and royal courts but still survives. [Late 1600s]

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Example Sentences

It is spoken in hospital corridors and courtrooms, in waiting rooms and at kitchen tables, by those who keep pressing, keep trying, keep hoping.

From Slate

Phil will be without a music director, and with no one in waiting in the wings.

From Los Angeles Times

They had a production deal at Netflix and another one at Spotify, and Harry secured millions of dollars to write his memoir, Spare, about a life in waiting.

From The Wall Street Journal

Having already attempted to force those suffering in waiting rooms to create their own “patient portals,” Dr. Al-Hashimi goes on to advocate for an AI-supported system to aid the doctors with pesky paper work.

From Los Angeles Times

Since becoming leader in 2023, ap Iorwerth has moved his party's focus away from independence as a central issue, and is pitching his party as a pragmatic government in waiting.

From BBC

Related Words

• delayed
• negotiated
• postponed