wait – English verb conjugation

Nominal Forms

Infinitive: to wait behind
Participle: waited behind
Gerund: waiting behind

Cognates

-

Indicative

Subjunctive

Conditional

Imperative

you	wait behind
we	Let's wait behind
you	wait behind

Indicative

Conditional

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms

wait in expectation

abide

rest in patience or expectation

stay

delay until

wait for

attend with ceremony or respect

serve

defer or postpone

procrastinate

to wait

bide

to stay or remain in a place or situation

abide, eld, linger, retard, stay, tarry

To attend on, especially with ceremony or respect.

serve

to delay movement or action until some event or time; to remain neglected or in readiness

abide, bide, defer, expect, hang on, hold on, hold one's breath, hold one's horses, hold one's water, hold out, stand by, stay

Especially for a suitable opportunity.

bide one's time

To accomplish nothing useful or lack a useful occupation.

twiddle one's thumbs

await

anticipate, expect, abide, delay, linger, remain, tarry, stay

serve

tend, deliver, help

Antonyms

to delay movement or action until some event or time; to remain neglected or in readiness

act, go it blind, grasp, grasp the nettle, jump at the chance, jump on, jump the gun, shoot first and ask questions later, shoot from the hip

Additional Information

Phrasal Verbs

Etymology

1. 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.
2. From Middle English waiten, from Anglo-Norman waiter, waitier (compare French guetter from Old French gaitier, guaitier), from Frankish *wahtwēn (“to watch, guard”), derivative of Frankish *wahtu (“guard, watch”), from Proto-Germanic *wahtwō (“guard, watch”), from Proto-Indo-European *weǵ- (“to be fresh, cheerful, awake”).
3. Cognate with Old High German wahtēn (“to watch, guard”), German Low German wachten (“to wait”), Dutch wachten (“to wait, expect”), French guetter (“to watch out for”), Saterland Frisian wachtje (“to wait”), West Frisian wachtsje (“to wait”), North Frisian wachtjen (“to stand, stay put”). More at watch.
4. In some senses, merged or influenced by Middle English waiten, weiten (“to do good to, lie in wait for, to contrive good or harm on, catch, snare”), from Old Norse veita (“to give help to, assist, grant, cause to happen”), from Proto-Germanic *waitijaną (“to show, guide, advise, direct”), from Proto-Indo-European *weyd- (“to see, know”).
5. Largely overtook native Middle English biden, from Old English bīdan, source of bide. See: Middle English 'waiten', French 'guetter', Old French 'gaitier', Dutch 'wachten', French 'guetter', Frisian, Saterlandic 'wachtje', Middle English 'waiten', Proto-Germanic '*waitijaną'.

Verbs referencing "wait"

Tok Pisin wet, English await, French guetter, Tok Pisin wetim, Belize Creole wayt.

Sample Sentences