the wait for sth
wait 作名词表示“等待”时，常与 the 连用，后接 for 引出所等的人或事物。
The wait for the test results seemed endless.
等待检测结果的过程似乎没完没了。
埋伏；延迟；伏击
延迟
A delay.
伏击
An ambush.
The wait for the bus was longer than expected.
等公交车的时间比预想的要长。
用法提示：这里wait是名词，表示等待的时间或耽搁。
After a short wait, the doctor called my name.
等了一会儿之后，医生叫了我的名字。
用法提示：wait作名词，指短暂等待的这段时间。
There was a long wait at the airport before boarding.
登机前在机场等了很久。
用法提示：这里的wait是名词，表示等候的过程或时间。
wait 作名词表示“等待”时，常与 the 连用，后接 for 引出所等的人或事物。
The wait for the test results seemed endless.
等待检测结果的过程似乎没完没了。
可用时间段或 long、short 等形容词放在 wait 前，说明等待的长短。
There was a two-hour wait at the clinic.
诊所里要等两个小时。
lie in wait 表示“埋伏等候”，用于偷袭、伏击的语境，for 引出埋伏的对象；lie 需随主语和时态变位。
The cat lay in wait for the birds by the feeder.
那只猫在喂食器旁埋伏着等鸟。
delay 侧重因受阻而延迟，可替换'wait'但强调延误
hold-up 指因阻塞造成的耽搁，常用于交通或进程
pause 指短暂停顿，强调暂停后继续
stoppage 指停止状态，常因故障或罢工导致
grammar · medium
易错句子There was long wait before the film started.
正确表达There was a long wait before the film started.
wait 指“一段等待的时间、延迟”时是可数名词，单数形式前必须加不定冠词 a/an；汉语没有冠词这一词类，学习者容易漏掉，所以应说 a long wait。
grammar · medium
易错句子Passengers faced three long wait at the airport.
正确表达Passengers faced three long waits at the airport.
wait 作可数名词，前面出现数词或表示复数的限定词时，名词本身必须变成复数 waits；汉语名词不随数词改变形式，因此容易忘记加 -s。
grammar · medium
易错句子I had a long waiting at the dentist's.
正确表达I had a long wait at the dentist's.
表示“一次等待、一段等待时间”的名词是 wait，它是可数名词；waiting 作名词时是不可数的抽象概念，不能与 a/an 连用，故用 a long wait。
作为名词，与wait（等待）相对，表示积极的行为或操作。
与wait的静止状态相对，表示活跃的行动。
漫长的等待
The long wait at the airport made everyone frustrated.
在机场漫长的等待让每个人都感到沮丧。
短暂的等待
There was only a short wait before the movie started.
电影开始前只有短暂的等待。
等待时间
The wait time for a table is about 30 minutes.
等桌子的时间大约是30分钟。
等候名单
I was put on a wait list for the popular course.
我被列入了热门课程的等候名单。
等待期
There is a mandatory wait period before you can reapply.
在你重新申请之前有一个强制性的等待期。
埋伏等待
The lion lay in wait for its prey behind the bush.
狮子躲在灌木后面埋伏等待猎物。
等待策略
The company played a waiting game to see what its competitors would do.
公司玩起了等待游戏，观察竞争对手的动向。
等待是最难熬的部分。
After submitting the application, the waiting was the hardest part.
提交申请后，等待是最难熬的部分。
快点然后等着。
The train was delayed again, so it was a case of hurry up and wait.
火车又晚点了，所以又是快点然后等着的情况。
Choose the next layer that will help you use wait with more confidence.
Recommended next
Preparing Confusing words
Complete this area with confusing words.
Dictionary facts from ECDICT, WIKTIONARY.