wait for it
6
7.0
- idiom
- Informal
:
espera
- The closer will start with introductions: how are you, how are you enjoying your experience, etc., etc., and then wait for it... here it comes... today only I am prepared to offer you the deal of a lifetime.
- wait for it, and then
Banned inconsiderate jokes and wait for it.
- Banned inconsiderate jokes and wait for it.
- It's definitely a sort of a joke within my family, with my friends, especially with my kids who will watch something with me and they'll say wait for it.
- And even though it that means take a long time, wait for it for surely it will come at an appointed time.
- And even though it Terry that mean take a long time wait for it for surely it will come at an appointed time.
Examples
-
And the name of that practice, wait for it, is Mindfulness by Design.
-
Wait for it... wait for it... that's right, eventually everything goes on sale.
Blog text (18) -
And of course, the newspaper was called, wait for it, the smoke signal.
-
And... wait for it.
Fiction book (1990) -
We've just arrived in (wait for it) Gay Paris!
Blog text (9) -
P.S. I'm signed up to come to RHHLive, and I absolutely cannot wait for it!
Blog text (18) -
Got a really nice young guy who found it could be patched, called the rental agency to make sure that was okay, and—wait for it—didn't charge us anything!
Blog text (9) -
This movie is amazing, but wait for it, the ending will blow your mind.
-
She has a big surprise for you, so just wait for it; you won't believe your eyes.
-
The chef is about to reveal his secret ingredient, so wait for it, it's unexpected.
Synonyms
61
6.9
To get a person's attention before saying something important or angry
1
8.6
Said when you show something that just appears or is ready
How Dramatic
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase literally combines 'wait' + 'for' + 'it' to instruct someone to wait for some forthcoming thing, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents can derive the core meaning that something is about to happen. Its pragmatic use as a suspense-building discourse marker is a straightforward, predictable extension of this literal sense and is common across languages, making it readily comprehensible.
Etymology
Wait for it comes from performers and storytellers who tell the crowd to wait for the moment when it will be shown, using a short pause to make the surprise bigger. So, when someone says wait for it, they want you to pay attention because a 'surprise' or impressive thing is coming.