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to await

to await

522 3.2
To wait for something with hope or excitement
  • verb
  • /əˈweɪt/
translation icon : esperar
  • Please stay in your room and await further instructions.
  • long-awaited
  • eagerly awaited
  • anxiously awaiting

And when she was talking to me, she was awaiting trial for this situation.

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Examples

  • Win it and a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity awaits you.

    Gran Turismo (2023)

  • When all items are completed, the students should stop and await further instructions.

    Academic text (2012)

  • Stand by and await my further orders.

  • Go to the city, await the enemy, and lead them here.

    Reign of Chaos (2022)

  • Think of all the possibilities that await you.

    Theater Camp (2023)

  • What are the life choices awaiting these young people when they grow up?

  • I nervously await the test results and guess what?

    First We Feast

  • We await your decision.

    Four (2011)

  • The air is heavy with anticipation as the silent crowd awaits the decision.

    Blue Like Jazz (2012)

  • The air is heavy with anticipation as the silent crowd awaits the decision.

Synonyms

to wait
vsto await
∞ 1.0

To stay in one place or delay action until something happens

focuses more on anticipating the event rather than the physical delay
to expect
vsto await
∞ 1.0

To think that something will happen

adds a sense of waiting for the event to occur rather than just believing it
to look forward to
vsto await
867 2.4

To want something to happen and feel excited about it

is more neutral and formal, not always showing joyful eagerness
to look forward
vsto await
825 1.4

Feel happy and excited about something that will happen

is broader and can be less emotional or less openly eager
to wait on
vsto await
  • US
83 3.9

To delay doing something until someone answers or a situation changes

is about expecting an event itself rather than postponing one’s action
to wait around
vsto await
  • Informal
71 2.5

To spend time doing nothing while waiting for someone or something

is more intentional, involving clear anticipation rather than idle passing time
to look for
vsto await
49 1.0

To feel excited or worried about something that will happen

is less about feelings and more about simply waiting for occurrence
to bide
vsto await
23 7.4

To wait patiently for the right time to act

focuses more on anticipating an occurrence than on strategic timing
to wait your turn
vsto await
17 2.0

Be patient and let others go before you until it is your turn

applies more generally to expecting an event, not only queued turns
to wait for one's ship to come in
vsto await
  • Informal
1 8.4

To hope to get rich without doing anything

covers general anticipating of events rather than long term hoped success
to bide one's time
vsto await
  • Informal
7.5

Wait for a good chance before acting

is more about expecting an event rather than timing action strategically

How Expectant

to anticipate
124 3.6
to await
522 3.2
to expect
∞ 1.0
to wait
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

await infinitive
awaited past
awaited past participle
awaiting present participle
awaits third person singular

Morphology

await = wait (semi-transparent) = a + wait

The link to 'wait' is clear, but 'a-' is not a productive modern English prefix for most learners and the formal transitive use is not fully predictable.

Etymology

Await comes from adding a- to wait, and wait once meant 'to watch' or 'be awake'. So to await something is to 'wait for' it to happen, often while looking forward to it.