waiting room

American  

[wey-ting room, room] / ˈweɪ tɪŋ ˌrum, ˌrʊm /

noun

• waiting rooms
  plural

1. a room for the use of persons waiting, as in a railroad station or a physician's office.

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waiting room British  

noun

1. a room in which people may wait, as at a railway station, doctor's or dentist's office, etc

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• waiting rooms
  plural

Etymology

Origin of waiting room

First recorded in 1675–85

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

waiting room

An unholy mashup of a waiting room and a bus, the people mover is slow, uncomfortable, and offensive to the eye.

From Slate ● Aug. 18, 2026

Cosmo, Hook and I would see happy families meet their new pets at the front patio, which also serves as a waiting room for patients and their owners.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026

Sitting in the waiting room, mentally preparing for an MRI, Maxine opens a browser and searches, “BREAST CANCER.”

From Salon ● Jun. 29, 2026

The waiting room outside the hepatology clinic at Rajagiri Hospital in Kochi is suspended between hope and despair.

From BBC ● Jun. 28, 2026

About ten minutes later an exhausted-looking doctor in a scrub shirt poked his head into the waiting room.

From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt

Related Words

• foyer
• reception room
• vestibule