wait
Americanverb (used without object)
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waits,
present (3rd person singular)
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waited,
past participle, past
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waiting
present participle
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to remain inactive or in a state of repose, as until something expected happens (often followed by for, till, oruntil ).
to wait for the bus to arrive.
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(of things) to be available or in readiness.
A letter is waiting for you.
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to remain neglected for a time.
a matter that can wait.
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to postpone or delay something or to be postponed or delayed.
We waited a week and then bought the house. Your vacation will have to wait until next month.
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to look forward to eagerly.
I'm just waiting for the day somebody knocks him down.
verb (used with object)
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waits,
present (3rd person singular)
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waited,
past participle, past
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waiting
present participle
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to continue in expectation of; await.
I sat nervously on the bench, waiting my turn to audition.
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to postpone or delay in expectation.
Don't wait supper for me.
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Archaic. (of things) to be in readiness for; be reserved for; await.
Glory waits thee.
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Archaic. to attend upon or escort, especially as a sign of respect.
noun
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waits
plural
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an act or instance of waiting or awaiting; delay; halt.
a wait at the border.
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a period or interval of waiting.
There will be a long wait between trains.
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Theater.
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the time between two acts, scenes, or the like.
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British.
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waits, (formerly) a band of musicians employed by a city or town to play music in parades, for official functions, etc.
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a street musician, especially a singer.
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one of a band of carolers.
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a piece sung by carolers, especially a Christmas carol.
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Obsolete. a watchman.
verb phrase
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wait up
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to postpone going to bed to await someone's arrival.
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Informal. to halt and wait for another to join one, as in running or walking.
Wait up, I can't walk so fast.
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wait on
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to perform the duties of an attendant or servant for.
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to supply the wants of a person, as serving a meal or serving a customer in a store.
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to call upon or visit (a person, especially a superior).
to wait on Her Majesty at the palace.
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Falconry. (of a hawk) to soar over ground until prey appears.
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Chiefly Midland and Southern U.S. to wait for (a person); await.
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Also wait upon. to await (an event).
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idioms
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lie in wait, to wait in ambush.
The army lay in wait in the forest.
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wait table. table.
verb
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to stay in one place or remain inactive in expectation (of something); hold oneself in readiness (for something)
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to delay temporarily or be temporarily delayed
that work can wait
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(of things) to be in store (for a person)
success waits for you in your new job
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(intr) to act as a waiter or waitress
noun
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the act or an instance of waiting
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a period of waiting
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rare (plural) a band of musicians who go around the streets, esp at Christmas, singing and playing carols
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an interlude or interval between two acts or scenes in a play, etc
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to prepare an ambush (for someone)
Usage
Sometimes considered objectionable in standard usage, the idiom wait on meaning “to wait for, to await (a person)” is largely confined to speech or written representations of speech. It is most common in the Midland and Southern United States: Let's not wait on Rachel, she's always late. Wait on or upon (an event) does not have a regional pattern and occurs in a wide variety of contexts: We will wait on (or upon ) his answer and make our decision then. The completion of the merger waits upon news of a drop in interest rates.
Synonym Usage
Wait, tarry imply pausing to linger and thereby putting off further activity until later. Wait usually implies staying for a limited time and for a definite purpose, that is, for something expected: to wait for a train. Tarry is a somewhat archaic word for wait, but it suggests lingering, perhaps aimlessly delaying, or pausing (briefly) in a journey: to tarry on the way home; to tarry overnight at an inn.
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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waitsimple
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waitssimple
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have waitedperfect
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has waitedperfect
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am waitingprogressive
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are waitingprogressive
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is waitingprogressive
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have been waitingperfect progressive
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has been waitingperfect progressive
Past
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waitedsimple
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had waitedperfect
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was waitingprogressive
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were waitingprogressive
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had been waitingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of wait
First recorded in 1150–1200; early Middle English verb waiten, from Anglo-French waitier; Old French guaitier, from Germanic; cognate with Old High German wahtēn “to watch,” derivative of wahta ”a watch” ( see wake 1)
Explanation
A wait is the time it takes for something to happen. The wait to get the brand new computer was four hours long, but it was worth it. The word wait originated in the 1200s, from the Old Northern French word waitier: "to watch with hostile intent." Even back then, people didn't like to wait. Anticipating something that will happen is waiting, though sometimes what you wait for never comes — like Godot, who never shows up in the play "Waiting for Godot." When you wait to do something, you delay. When you wait tables, you serve people, preferably without delay.
Vocabulary lists containing wait
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.
See Examples For:
“The real issue is, if you should slow down, then stop running so fast and don’t wait for somebody else to make you do that.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026
"Initially, we used to quote an average wait of seven days on the urgent transplant list," he says.
From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2026
To receive the funds from our last checking account, we had to wait 15 days for a cashier’s check to arrive by mail.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 23, 2026
There is money to be made from those too impatient or important to wait days for a package, to renew a passport or to enter the Sistine Chapel.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 23, 2026
Hord would have to wait a while longer to be Clan Leader.
From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver
A test that screens for 50 cancers waits for FDA approval.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 24, 2026
Long waits and patient frustration are obvious shades of the NHS.
From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2026
Eric Martin, 45, of the South Bay, notes his cat Bruno waits for his return in the window, running to the bedroom to jump on the bed in excitement when he returns.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026
For years, we’ve been promised proactive AI that eases our burdens, rather than reactive AI that just waits for our prompts.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026
Mom waits on the same couch on the opposite week.
From "Blended" by Sharon M. Draper
The manager of the D.C. food stand said the AI-generated sign was a temporary solution while they waited for higher-quality pictures.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026
While Riley waited for a liver transplant, doctors began to notice improvements in his health, despite his parents initially being told the damage could be "irreversible".
From BBC ● Sep. 22, 2026
“Bitcoin has reached a technical milestone the market has waited roughly 10 months to see,” Liu said.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 21, 2026
I tossed it with store-bought ravioli and shredded rotisserie chicken warmed in olive oil, put peas on the side, and waited for the part where I needed to fix something.
From Salon ● Sep. 20, 2026
She waited after the sun set and into the evening.
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
But many, like Woods, are still waiting for true relief.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 24, 2026
When the waiting becomes almost too much, Deborah starts humming a few bars of a familiar song.
From Salon ● Sep. 24, 2026
The super urgent waiting list he was placed on is the highest priority of the three tiers of patients waiting for a new heart.
From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2026
No agents have been charged in connection with either shooting, and Good’s and Pretti’s family members are still waiting for accountability.
From Slate ● Sep. 23, 2026
There were a lot of people waiting to order food, and Kathy could understand why.
From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith
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.
