Waiting: English Vocabulary List

to be forced to wait for a person or anticipate something

"Cool your heels now."

"We had to cool our heels at the airport for three hours due to the unexpected flight delay."

to allow or wait for a situation to become calmer or more stable after a significant change or serious dispute

"Wait for dust to settle."

"After the dramatic announcement, everyone agreed to let the dust settle before discussing the implications further."

to patiently wait and avoid taking action until one finds a suitable or advantageous time

"The cat bided its time before pouncing."

"The spider bided its time in the corner waiting patiently for a fly to land in its web."

to wait for something anxiously or eagerly

"I'll hold my breath."

"Everyone in the audience held their breath as the tightrope walker made the final step across the chasm."

to hold on and not to rush into doing something, often used imperatively

"Hold your horses, we are not ready yet."

"Hold your horses before spending all your money because we need to make a careful plan first."

used for telling a person to be more patient or to think before reacting angrily

"Keep your pants on, please."

"Keep your shirt on; we'll get there eventually, so there's no need to get so agitated."

to spend time wastefully or do something with delay

"Don't let grass grow here."

"If you let the grass grow under your feet, you will miss many great opportunities that life offers to you."

to stop doing anything for a while

"Just hang tight, help is coming soon."

"Just hang tight while I go and find a mechanic to fix our flat tire."

the assessment or understanding of the current state or conditions of a particular situation or context, specifically at a specific point or period

"Let us first see how the land lies."

"Before making a decision the politician wanted to see how the land lay with the voters."