WAI Idioma
lie in wait
wait a minute
wait a sec
wait around
wait for the other shoe to drop
wait on customers
wait on hand and foot
wait on tables
wait on you hand and foot
wait up
wait up for
wait with bated breath
wail
wait about
They waited about for another bus，but none came．他们不耐烦地等着下一辆公共汽车，可是一直没有车来。
Where have you been？I've been waiting around for you for more than an hour！你去哪儿了？我已等了你一个多小时！
wait about/around
They waited about for another bus，but none came．他们不耐烦地等着下一辆公共汽车，可是一直没有车来。
Where have you been？I've been waiting around for you for more than an hour！你去哪儿了？我已等了你一个多小时！
wait at/on table
The girl earns her pocket money by waiting at table in a restaurant．这女孩在一家餐馆当服务员以挣些零花钱。
wait at table
The girl earns her pocket money by waiting at table in a restaurant．这女孩在一家餐馆当服务员以挣些零花钱。
wait on
She waited on us at dinner．她在一旁侍候我们吃饭。
The old lady does not like to be waited upon，because she thinks she is still capable of taking care of herself．那位老太太不喜欢别人侍候，因为她认为她生活还能自理。
2．follow as a consequence为…结果；随…而产生
Success waits on hard work．成功来自于勤奋。
His whole future waits on the results of the examination．他的整个前程都取决于这次考试的结果。
wait on table
The girl earns her pocket money by waiting at table in a restaurant．这女孩在一家餐馆当服务员以挣些零花钱。
wait on/upon
She waited on us at dinner．她在一旁侍候我们吃饭。
The old lady does not like to be waited upon，because she thinks she is still capable of taking care of herself．那位老太太不喜欢别人侍候，因为她认为她生活还能自理。
2．follow as a consequence为…结果；随…而产生
Success waits on hard work．成功来自于勤奋。
His whole future waits on the results of the examination．他的整个前程都取决于这次考试的结果。
wait out
We shall wait the enemy out，and watch them starve．我们将按兵不动，等着敌人断粮挨饿。
The enemy are still advancing，but we can wait them out in this valley．敌人还在前进，可我们可以按兵不动，使他们在这山谷里不战自败。
2．await calmly and patiently the end of安静而耐心地等待…结束
The storm showed no sign of abating．We'd have to be patient and wait it out．风暴丝毫没有减弱的迹象，我们只得耐心地等待它过去。
wait upon
She waited on us at dinner．她在一旁侍候我们吃饭。
The old lady does not like to be waited upon，because she thinks she is still capable of taking care of herself．那位老太太不喜欢别人侍候，因为她认为她生活还能自理。
2．follow as a consequence为…结果；随…而产生
Success waits on hard work．成功来自于勤奋。
His whole future waits on the results of the examination．他的整个前程都取决于这次考试的结果。
waiting in the wings
Idiom(s): waiting in the wingsTheme: PREPARATION - READY
ready or prepared to do something, especially to take over someone else's job or position. (From waiting at the side of the stage to go on.)
• Mr. Smith retires as manager next year, and Mr. Jones is just waiting in the wings.
• Jane was waiting in the wings, hoping that a member of the hockey team would drop out and she would get a place on the team.
wait-and-see attitude
Idiom(s): wait-and-see attitudeTheme: INDECISION
a skeptical attitude; an uncertain attitude where someone will just wait and see what happens. (Fixed order.)
• John thought that Mary couldn't do it, but he took a wait-and-see attitude.
• His wait-and-see attitude didn't influence me at all.
wait on sb hand and foot
Idiom(s): wait on sb hand and footTheme: ASSISTANCE
to serve someone very well, attending to all personal needs.
• I don't mind bringing you your coffee, but I don't intend to wait on you hand and foot.
• I don't want anyone to wait on me hand and foot. I can take care of myself.
not able to wait
Idiom(s): not able to waitTheme: URGENCY
to have to go to the bathroom urgently. (Informal.)
• Mom, I can't wait.
• Driver, stop the bus! My little boy cant wait.
lie in wait for
Idiom(s): lie in wait for sb or sthTheme: ENTRAPMENT
to wait quietly in ambush for someone or something.
• The lion lay in wait for the zebra.
• The robber was lying in wait for a victim.
Time and tide wait for no man.
Delaying a decision will not prevent events from taking place.Accident waiting to happen
If something is an accident waiting to happen, there's definitely going to be an accident or it's bound to go wrong. ('Disaster waiting to happen' is also used.)Time and tide wait for no man
This is used as a way of suggestion that people should act without delay.Wait for a raindrop in the drought
When someone is waiting for a raindrop in the drought, they are waiting or hoping for something that is extremely unlikely to happen.dumbwaiter
n. A small elevator for carrying food, dishes, etc., from one floor to another in hotels, restaurants, or large homes. The banquet was delayed because the dumbwaiter broke down and the food had to be carried upstairs by hand.lie in wait|lie|wait
v. phr. To watch from hiding in order to attack or surprise someone; to ambush. The driver of the stage-coach knew that the thieves were lying in wait somewhere along the road.play a waiting game|game|play|waiting|waiting game
v. phr. To withhold action until one's chances for success improve. Ray would like to be vice president of the company so he is playing a waiting game in the hope that the president will soon recognize his abilities.wait at table|table|wait|wait on table|wait table
v. phr. To serve food. Mrs. Lake had to teach her new maid to wait on table properly. The girls earn spending money by waiting at table in the school dining rooms.wait on|wait|wait upon
v. 1. To serve. Sue has a summer job waiting on an invalid. The clerk in the store asked if we had been waited upon. 2. formal To visit as a courtesy or for business. We waited upon the widow out of respect for her husband. John waited upon the President with a letter of introduction. 3. To follow. Success waits on hard work.wait on hand and foot|foot|hand|wait
v. phr. To serve in every possible way; do everything for (someone). Sally is spoiled because her mother waits on her hand and foot. The gentlemen had a valet to wait on him hand and foot.Compare: HAND AND FOOT.
wait up|wait
v. phr. To not go to bed until a person one is worried about comes home (said by parents and marriage partners). My mother always waited up for me when I went out as a young student. She always waits up for her husband when he's out late.waiting list|list|wait|waiting
n. A list of persons waiting to get into something (as a school). The nursery school enrollment was complete, so the director put our child's name on the waiting list. The landlord said there were no vacant apartments available, but that he would put the Rogers' name on the waiting list.waiting room|room|wait|waiting
n. phr. The sitting area in a doctor's, lawyer's, accountant's, etc. office, or in a hospital, or other workplace, where people wait their turn. Some doctor's offices have elegantly furnished waiting rooms with magazines, newspapers, and coffee for the patients.can't wait
can't waitBe very eager, anxious, or impatient, as in We can't wait for the baseball season to begin or I can't wait to see Dad—it's been a year. While the literal sense of being unable to wait (for lack of time) is much older, this figurative usage dates only from about 1930.
hurry up and wait
hurry up and waitMove quickly and then have to wait for something or someone. For example, We did our share in good time, but the others were several days behind so we couldn't finish—it was another case of hurry up and wait. This expression dates from the 1940s and probably originated in the armed services.
in wait
in waitsee lie in wait.
in waiting
in waitingIn attendance, especially on a royal personage. For example, The prelates who were in waiting asked him to take the last rites. This usage has become less common with the diminution of royalty and royal courts but still survives. [Late 1600s]
play a waiting game
play a waiting gameDelay an action or decision so as to force an opponent to move or to gain additional information. For example, The lawyer advised her to play a waiting game and see if her husband would come up with more alimony. [Late 1800s]
wail like a banshee
wail like a bansheeScream shrilly, as in Terrified, she wailed like a banshee. In Irish folklore, a banshee is a spirit in the form of a wailing woman whose appearance is an omen that one member of a family will die. The simile dates from the late 1800s.
wain
wainthe Wain
Charles's Wain
wait
waitIn addition to the idioms beginning with wait, also see can't wait; hurry up and wait; in waiting; lie in wait; play a waiting game.
* * *
- wait a minute
- wait and see
- wait at table
- wait for the other shoe to drop
- wait on
- wait on hand and foot
- wait out
- wait up
- waiting game
- waiting in the wings
wait and see
wait and seeBide one's time for events to run their course, as in Do you think they'll raise taxes?—We'll have to wait and see. This expression was first recorded in Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe (1719): “We had no remedy but to wait and see.” In Britain the phrase became associated with Prime Minister H.H. Asquith, who in 1910 so often said it to the opposition regarding an impending bill that he became known as “Old Wait and See.”
waiting
waitingin waiting
in attendance, as on a king or other person of royalty
More Idioms/Phrases
An WAI idiom dictionary is a great resource for writers, students, and anyone looking to expand their vocabulary. It contains a list of words with similar meanings with WAI, allowing users to choose the best word for their specific context.
Dizionario di parole simili, diverso tenore, sinonimi, di invocazione per Idioma WAI
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