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wait

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wait

  [weyt]
Use wait in a Sentence
–verb (used without object)
1. to remain inactive or in a state of repose, as until something expected happens (often fol. by for, till, or until): to wait for the bus to arrive.
2. (of things) to be available or in readiness: A letter is waiting for you.
3. to remain neglected for a time: a matter that can wait.
4. 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.
5. to look forward to eagerly: I'm just waiting for the day somebody knocks him down.
–verb (used with object)
6. to continue as one is in expectation of; await: to wait one's turn at a telephone booth.
7. to postpone or delay in expectation: Don't wait supper for me.
8. Archaic. (of things) to be in readiness for; be reserved for; await: Glory waits thee.
9. Archaic. to attend upon or escort, esp. as a sign of respect.
–noun
10. an act or instance of waiting or awaiting; delay; halt: a wait at the border.
11. a period or interval of waiting: There will be a long wait between trains.
12. Theater.
a. the time between two acts, scenes, or the like.
b. stage wait.
13. British.
a. waits, (formerly) a band of musicians employed by a city or town to play music in parades, for official functions, etc.
b. a street musician, esp. a singer.
c. one of a band of carolers.
d. a piece sung by carolers, esp. a Christmas carol.
14. Obsolete. a watchman.
—Verb phrases
15. wait on,
a. to perform the duties of an attendant or servant for.
b. to supply the wants of a person, as serving a meal or serving a customer in a store.
c. to call upon or visit (a person, esp. a superior): to wait on Her Majesty at the palace.
d. Falconry. (of a hawk) to soar over ground until prey appears.
e. Chiefly Midland and Southern U.S. to wait for (a person); await.
f. Also, wait upon. to await (an event).
16. wait up,
a. to postpone going to bed to await someone's arrival.
b. Informal. to halt and wait for another to join one, as in running or walking: Wait up, I can't walk so fast.
—Idioms
17. lie in wait, to wait in ambush: The army lay in wait in the forest.
18. wait table. table (def. 26).
Origin:
1150–1200; (v.) early ME waiten < AF waitier; OF guaitier < Gmc; c. OHG wahtēn to watch, deriv. of wahta a watch (see wake 1 ); (n.) late ME < AF deriv. of waitier

Synonyms:
1. await, linger, abide, delay. 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.

Usage note:
15e, f. 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.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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wait   (wāt)   
v.   wait·ed, wait·ing, waits

v.   intr.

    1. To remain or rest in expectation: waiting for the guests to arrive. See Synonyms at stay1.

    2. To tarry until another catches up.

  2. To remain or be in readiness: lunch waiting on the table.

  3. To remain temporarily neglected, unattended to, or postponed: The trip will have to wait.

  4. To work as a waiter or waitress.

v.   tr.

  1. To remain or stay in expectation of; await: wait one's turn.

  2. Informal To delay (a meal or an event); postpone: They waited lunch for us.

  3. To be a waiter or waitress at: wait tables.

n.  

  1. The act of waiting or the time spent waiting.

  2. Chiefly British

    1. One of a group of musicians employed, usually by a city, to play in parades or public ceremonies.

    2. One of a group of musicians or carolers who perform in the streets at Christmastime.

Phrasal Verb(s):
wait on/upon

  1. To serve the needs of; be in attendance on.

  2. To make a formal call on; visit.

  3. To follow as a result; depend on.

  4. To await: They're waiting on my decision.

wait outTo delay until the termination of: wait out a war; waited out the miniskirt craze.
wait up

  1. To postpone going to bed in anticipation of something or someone.

  2. Informal To stop or pause so that another can catch up: Let's wait up for the stragglers.


[Middle English waiten, from Old North French waitier, to watch, of Germanic origin; see weg- in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

wait  (v.)
c.1200, "to watch with hostile intent, lie in wait for," from O.N.Fr. waitier "to watch" (Fr. guetter), from Frank. *wahton (cf. Du. wacht "a watching," O.H.G. wahten, Ger. wachten "to watch, to guard;" O.H.G. wahhon "to watch, be awake," O.E. wacian "to be awake;" see wake (v.)). General sense of "remain in some place" is from 1375; meaning "serve as an attendant at a table" is from 1568. The noun is first attested c.1300. To wait (something) out "endure a period of waiting" is recorded from 1909, originally Amer.Eng., in ref. to baseball batters trying to draw a base on balls. Waiting game is recorded from 1890. Waiting room is attested from 1683. Waiting list is recorded from 1897; the verb wait-list "to put (someone) on a waiting list" is recorded from 1960.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Idioms & Phrases

wait

In addition to the idioms beginning with wait, also see can't wait; hurry up and wait; in waiting; lie in wait; play a waiting game.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Encyclopedia

wait

an English town watchman or public musician who sounded the hours of the night. In the later Middle Ages the waits were night watchmen, who sounded horns or even played tunes to mark the hours. In the 15th and 16th centuries waits developed into bands of itinerant musicians who paraded the streets at night at Christmas time. From the early 16th century, London and all the chief boroughs had their corporation waits.

Learn more about wait with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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