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noun
Wait  n.  
1.
The act of waiting; a delay; a halt. "There is a wait of three hours at the border Mexican town of El Paso."
2.
Ambush. "An enemy in wait."
3.
One who watches; a watchman. (Obs.)
4.
pl. Hautboys, or oboes, played by town musicians; not used in the singular. (Obs.)
5.
pl. Musicians who sing or play at night or in the early morning, especially at Christmas time; serenaders; musical watchmen. (Written formerly wayghtes) "Hark! are the waits abroad?" "The sound of the waits, rude as may be their minstrelsy, breaks upon the mild watches of a winter night with the effect of perfect harmony."
To lay wait, to prepare an ambuscade.
To lie in wait. See under 4th Lie.






Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48








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"Wait" Quotes from Famous Books



... "Wait a minute! I'm coming to get you!" was what they all heard, and, looking up, Bunny Brown saw Bunker Blue rowing along in his sailboat. The sail, however, was not ...
— Bunny Brown and His Sister Sue at Christmas Tree Cove • Laura Lee Hope

... neither the psychic telepathy of Forbes Robertson's Caesar, nor the fire-breath of E.H. Sothern's Don Quixote. The audience is not worked up into the deadly still mob-unity of the speaking theatre. We late comers wait for the whole reel to start over and the goal to be indicated in the preliminary, before we can get the least bit wrought up. The prize may be a lady's heart, the restoration of a lost reputation, or ...
— The Art Of The Moving Picture • Vachel Lindsay

... you are my queen," said he; "but we shall wait for the soup till our golden wedding, and the poor in my kingdom will have something to rejoice over ...
— The Sand-Hills of Jutland • Hans Christian Andersen

... This wait was not long. A streak of white appeared along the sea line, and this drove nearer with frightful rapidity. With a pandemonium of sound, the tempest was upon them. The spars bent, groaning beneath the strain, and the ...
— Doubloons—and the Girl • John Maxwell Forbes

... mountain named Sobissacalo; and we passed by the very mountain of Ararat, on which the ark of Noah is said to have rested. I was very desirous to have gone to the top of that mountain, but the company with which I travelled would not wait for me; and the people of the country allege that no one was ever able to ascend to its top, because, say they, it is contrary to the will of God. Continuing our journey, we came to Tauris[3], a great and royal ...
— A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels, Vol. 1 • Robert Kerr

... your answer," he said in the low voice that thrills; the voice which says so much more than the mere words. "I could not wait—I tried to keep away from you until to-morrow; but it was of no use. I am here, you see, and I want your answer. Don't tell me it is 'No!' Trust me, Ida—trust to my love for you. I will devote my life to trying to make you happy. ...
— At Love's Cost • Charles Garvice

... bear the thought of so dreadful a termination to his life, for he knew of a great deal worth living for; besides, his mother would need his help as soon as he grew old enough to earn anything. What should he do? Wait until dark, and then run away, and tramp off to the West, where other runaway boys went, or should he make for the sea-board, and from there to South America, from which country he had heard that criminals could not be ...
— Harper's Young People, October 5, 1880 - An Illustrated Weekly • Various

... need it to humble, warn, comfort, and lift them up, religion is, nevertheless, in its origin independent of knowledge and moral will. Faith is older than science and morals: the doctrine of religion did not wait for astronomy and cosmology, nor the erection of temples for ethics. Before the development of the moral concepts religion already existed in the form of wonder without a special object, of a gloomy ...
— History Of Modern Philosophy - From Nicolas of Cusa to the Present Time • Richard Falckenberg

... glowered under lowering brows, but what could he do? "We must see," he said to the others, "what time will bring. Just now there is nothing much to do. This crisis has been too sudden. You say you are not through with him, Hosmer, and neither am I. But we must wait. We shall have to break him politically in this city, and I am confident that in the end we can do it." The others were grateful for his courage even though to-morrow he and they must part with millions to protect themselves and the banks. ...
— The Titan • Theodore Dreiser

... O, what brighter glories wait To crown the second Adam's state! What honours shall thy Son adorn Who condescended to ...
— The Psalms of David - Imitated in the Language of The New Testament - And Applied to The Christian State and Worship • Isaac Watts

... from contrary winds, and a long wait at Cyprus, the French army landed in Egypt, where the first attack was to be made; King Louis leaped, fully armed, from his galley into the sea in his eagerness to reach the shore. The Saracens fled at first before the invading army, and the city of Damietta was taken almost without ...
— Chatterbox, 1906 • Various

... Harrodsburgh, had a part in this command: A council was held, in which, after considering the disparity of numbers, it was still determined to pursue the Indians. Such was their impetuosity, that they could not be persuaded to wait for the arrival of Colonel Logan, who was known to be collecting a strong party ...
— The First White Man of the West • Timothy Flint

... him. There were, indeed, toward the end of his life, some things trying to one of my temperament, and among these things I may mention his exceeding reticence, and his willingness not only to labor but to wait; but these stood not at all in the way of my respect and ...
— Volume I • Andrew Dickson White

... only things as are awk'ard. It's this way, my boy. When you fust of all come and told me about what I may call the great transformation scene, you said, "Now it ain't a-goin' to make no difference, Dan," you said. Now wait till I've finished; I ain't complainin' of nobody. Well, and I tried to 'ope as it wouldn't make no difference, though I 'ad my doubts. "Come an' see us all just as usu'l," you said. Well, I tried to do so, and three or four weeks I come reg'lar, lookin' in of a Sunday night. But somehow ...
— Demos • George Gissing

... of sky would squeak: but people did not mind it: and when first a star passed the meridian, then Jupiter, then some stars, and then Saturn, he was much applauded. Before beginning I gave notice that I should wait to answer questions: and as soon as the lecture was finished the Chairman repeated this and begged people to ask. So several people did ask very pertinent questions (from the benches) shewing that they had attended well. Others came ...
— Autobiography of Sir George Biddell Airy • George Biddell Airy

... on the coupons aloud together. Ethel was at first not quite satisfied with the arrangement of the coupons. 'Thirty dollars on January first, and thirty on July first,' she said. That seems a long while to wait for those payments, Richard. And there are only two in every year, though you pay them a thousand dollars all at once. It does not seem very prompt on their part.' I told her that this was the rule. 'But,' she urged, 'don't you think ...
— Mother • Owen Wister

... quick-seeing eyes he must, no doubt. But my eyes were not quick, and they were, moreover, fixed on a world outside the theater. Better than his talent and his will I remember his courtesy. In those days, instead of having our salaries brought to our dressing-rooms, we used to wait in a queue on Treasury Day to receive them. I was always late in coming, and always in a hurry to get away. Very gravely and quietly Henry Irving used to give ...
— The Story of My Life - Recollections and Reflections • Ellen Terry

... more. Look at the other beaux. Wait until Miss Percy is in the high tide of a London season. You forget that if girls are always on the catch, men are always ready ...
— The Gorgeous Isle - A Romance; Scene: Nevis, B.W.I. 1842 • Gertrude Atherton

... enemy's army," he remarked just after breakfast, "outnumbers ours by more than a fourth; nevertheless we have ninety chances out of a hundred in our favour." Ney, who then chanced to come in, quickly remarked: "No doubt, sire, if Wellington were simple enough to wait for you; but I come to inform you that he is retreating." "You have seen wrong," was the retort, "the time is gone for that." Soult did not share his master's assurance of victory, and once more begged him to recall some of ...
— The Life of Napoleon I (Volumes, 1 and 2) • John Holland Rose

... said, in a tone of resignation. 'Then I will wait for Stradella at the door of the sacristy. That was the original plan. Hark! He is ...
— Stradella • F(rancis) Marion Crawford

... left, he not having taken it with him when he went to hunt after his father. The old lady took the rifle, the daughter the axe, and thus armed they determined to watch through the night; and defend themselves if necessary. They had not long to wait after night fall, for shortly after that some one commenced knocking at the door, crying out "Mother! mother!" but Mrs. Parker thought the voice was not exactly like that of her son—in order to ascertain the fact, she said "Jake, where are the Indians?" The reply which was "um gone," ...
— Heroes and Hunters of the West • Anonymous

... arising in the Carthaginian senate as to what was to be done, Hanno, an aged and wise citizen, advised that they should prudently take advantage of their victory to make peace with the Romans, while as conquerors they might have it on favourable terms, and not wait to make it after a defeat; since it should be their object to show the Romans that they were strong enough to fight them, but not to peril the victory they had won in the hope of winning a greater. This advice was not followed by the Carthaginian ...
— Discourses on the First Decade of Titus Livius • Niccolo Machiavelli

... "Wait! Oh, I'm so excited I'm all mixed up! She's had an awful spell, but she's better now; but you mustn't startle her. Something's the matter with her heart. It was beating ...
— The Gentle Art of Cooking Wives • Elizabeth Strong Worthington

... phytivorous[obs3]; ichthyivorous[obs3]; omophagic[obs3], omophagous[obs3]; pantophagous[obs3], phytophagous[obs3], xylophagous Phr[Biol]. "across the walnuts and the wine" [Tennyson]; "blessed hour of our dinners!" [O. Meredith]; "now good digestion wait on appetite, and health on both!" [Macbeth]; "who can cloy ...
— Roget's Thesaurus

... forth; so that we have no need to speak anything. (9)For they themselves report concerning us, what manner of entrance we had to you, and how ye turned to God from idols, to serve the living and true God, (10)and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus, who delivers us from the wrath ...
— The New Testament of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. • Various

... "Wait a moment," von Schlichten told the sergeant. Then he disgorged and pouched his geek-speaker. "See that head, there?" he asked, rolling it over with his toe. "I killed that geek, myself, with my pistol, while Them and ...
— Uller Uprising • Henry Beam Piper, John D. Clark and John F. Carr

... prisoners, wagons, sick and wounded, the barefoot, and dismounted men, was driving four-footed supplies south on his way to the Tennessee River, and he was not likely to risk or relinquish any of the spoil. Buford's Kentuckians lay in wait along the Cumberland, hoping perhaps to echo, if only faintly, their earlier successes against the gunboats and supply transports. And at ...
— Ride Proud, Rebel! • Andre Alice Norton

... your Mess is brought from the kitchen, lest you be thought starved or a glutton. Have your nails clean. Don't bite your bread, but break it. Don't quarrel at table, or make grimaces. Don't cram your cheeks out with food like an ape, for if any one should speak to you, you can't answer, but must wait. Don't eat on both sides of your mouth. Don't laugh with your mouth full, or sup up your potage noisily. Don't leave your spoon in the dish or on its side, but clean your spoon. Let no dirt off your fingers ...
— Early English Meals and Manners • Various

... that city on our way to New Orleans, and I had had a real attack of nerves caused by the "cheek" of the inhabitants, who, in spite of the lateness of the hour, had got up a deputation to wait upon me. I was dead with fatigue, and was dropping off to sleep in my bed in the car. I therefore energetically declined to see anybody. But these people knocked at my windows, sang round about my carriage, and finally ...
— My Double Life - The Memoirs of Sarah Bernhardt • Sarah Bernhardt

... instance where the uplifted hand of murder has been paralyzed—no truthful account in all the literature of the world of the innocent child being shielded by God. Thousands of crimes are being committed ever day—men are at this moment lying in wait for their human prey—wives are whipped and crushed, driven to insanity and death—little children begging for mercy, lifting imploring, tear-filled eyes to the brutal faces of fathers and mothers—sweet girls are ...
— Lectures of Col. R. G. Ingersoll - Latest • Robert Green Ingersoll

... marked defects. His will was less powerful than his imagination. Bold in conception, he was terribly slow in execution. When his good sense showed him the opportunity, his imagination whispered, "Suppose the enemy has reserves of which I know nothing! Is it not more prudent to wait until I receive more accurate information?" And so "I dare not," inevitably waited on "I would." He forgot that in war it is impossible for a general to be absolutely certain. It is sufficient, according to Napoleon, if the odds in his favour are three to two; and if he cannot discover from ...
— Stonewall Jackson And The American Civil War • G. F. R. Henderson

... was married before her eldest sister; for Aggie had to wait till Arthur's salary rose. He thought it was going to rise at midsummer, or if not at midsummer, then at Michaelmas. But midsummer and Michaelmas passed, Christmas and Easter, too, and Arthur's salary showed no sign of rising. He daren't tell Aggie that he had been obliged ...
— The Judgment of Eve • May Sinclair

... their wrongs in pathetic and startling language. They appealed to those puissant and illustrious chevaliers to prevent the perpetration of the great wrong which was now impending over so many innocent heads. "Wait not," they said, "till the thunderbolt has fallen, till the deluge has overwhelmed us, till the fires already blazing have laid the land in coals and ashes, till no other course be possible, but to abandon the country in its desolation to foreign barbarity. Let the cause of the oppressed come to ...
— The Rise of the Dutch Republic, 1555-1566 • John Lothrop Motley

... the soul. There is a law working with which there should be no tampering, lest in foolish interruption come only confusion and disaster. Against every such question there should be written the one word, "Wait." ...
— The Judgment House • Gilbert Parker

... matter. Your pretty name, 'Germaine,' in the dedication will bring us luck. I left a couple of copies at the Astiers' in the Rue de Beaune. You know they no longer occupy their rooms at the Foreign Office. But Madame Astier has still her 'Wednesdays.' So of course I wait till Wednesday to hear what my old master thinks of the book; and off I went ...
— The Immortal - Or, One Of The "Forty." (L'immortel) - 1877 • Alphonse Daudet

... Seeing the Prince's flashing eye and recalling the Duchess's traveling dress, he prepared for a dissolution of the monarchy. His confusion knew no bounds when he heard the Prince's order: "Beg Madame the Duchess to wait a small quarter of an hour." The general-aide-de-camp executed a right-about-face, like a soldier on parade; the Prince still smiled. "Fontana is not accustomed," he said to himself, "to see our proud Duchess kept waiting. The astonished face with which he has gone to tell her 'to wait ...
— Library Of The World's Best Literature, Ancient And Modern, Vol 4 • Charles Dudley Warner

... opened, lady,' said Marina, 'for those wait without, who will see that they are locked when I have passed them. But there will be nothing to fear from the guard, trust to me for it. See, the bars of this window are but of wood, that sword will soon sever them, and if you are seen ...
— Montezuma's Daughter • H. Rider Haggard

... him. He's a corker. Wait till you see him, Betty. Nobody's asking you to marry him before lunch. You'll have plenty of time to get acquainted. It beats me what you're kicking at. You give me a pain ...
— The Prince and Betty - (American edition) • P. G. Wodehouse

... Continental Defense deplored the lack of precedent. But actually none was needed. You just don't drop four miles of dead or dying alien flesh on Seattle or any other part of a swarming homeland. You wait till it flies out over the ocean, if it will—the ...
— The Good Neighbors • Edgar Pangborn

... we must have crossed the frontier," replied Hal. "However, we'll wait another half hour before descending ...
— The Boy Allies in the Balkan Campaign - The Struggle to Save a Nation • Clair W. Hayes

... this', she said. I poured a little bit and drank it kinda lak I wuz afraid. She cursed and said 'I ain't go conjure you. Drink it.' She got the cards and told me to cut 'em, so I did. Looking at the cards, she said: 'You lak ter wait too long; they got him marching to the cemetery. The poor thing! I'll fix those devils. (A profane word was used instead of devils). He got a knot on his side, ain't he?' Yes, Mam, I said. That 'oman told me everything that was wrong with Albert and zackly ...
— Slave Narratives: A Folk History of Slavery in the United States From Interviews with Former Slaves: Volume IV, Georgia Narratives, Part 1 • Works Projects Administration

... riches and produce of a thousand distant climes. What elements of future greatness and prosperity encircle you on every side! Never yield up these solid advantages to become an humble dependent on the great republic—wait patiently, loyally, lovingly, upon the illustrious parent from whom you sprang, and by whom you have been fostered into life and political importance; in the fulness of time she will proclaim your childhood past, and bid you stand up in ...
— Roughing it in the Bush • Susanna Moodie

... somewhat shalbe said, as touching the seruices that these Ports of duetie owe, and in deed haue done, to the Princes: whereof the one (I meane with what number of vessels, in what maner of furniture, and for how long season, they ought to wait on the king at the Sea, vpon their owne charges) shall partly appeare by that which we shall presently say, and partly by that which shall followe in Sandwich, and Rumney: The other shall bee made manifest by examples, drawne out of good histories: and they both shall be testified by the words ...
— The Principal Navigations, Voyages, Traffiques and Discoveries - of the English Nation, v. 1, Northern Europe • Richard Hakluyt

... finally was lost in the distance, probably a mile away, but there was nothing for it but to wait. If Turk had been a full-bred and trained Foxhound he would have stuck to that trail all night, but in half an hour he returned, puffing and hot, to throw himself into the ...
— Two Little Savages • Ernest Thompson Seton

... deep and strong, And some of us pause on the hither-bank slow-footed, and linger long. But early or late we must plunge in and battle across the tide, Though the beckoning shapes look dark and grim that wait on the farther side. But they whom the King's Ambassador, or ever their race be run, Has summoned, must leave at the moment the sight of the friendly sun. He's a kindly man, with a cheerful voice, but he never brooks delay ...
— Punch, Or The London Charivari, Vol. 100., Jan. 10, 1891 • Various

... shall not impute the cause to be In my default, her will should want effect: But in the king is all my doubt, lest he My suit for her new marriage should reject. Yet shall I prove him: and I heard it said, He means this evening in the park to hunt.[54] Here will I wait ...
— A Select Collection of Old English Plays, Vol. VII (4th edition) • Various

... called Ybalon, [124] twenty leguas from the channel of the same island of Luzon, which is sheltered from the vendavals, and has a good entrance and anchorage. There the vessels that enter to escape the vendaval find shelter, and wait until the brisa returns, by which to go to ...
— The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898: Volume XVI, 1609 • H.E. Blair

... has been broken and twisted to get the ends apart. The choice of one's leisure is to watch the A.S.C. or play football, twenty a side, or sit about indoors, or stand in the doorway, or walk down to the Estaminet and wait five or six deep for the billiard-table. Ultimately one sits. And so ...
— Mr. Britling Sees It Through • H. G. Wells

... secrets, and she's told me several already; for she says she has a feeling that I can keep a secret, and so I can. But telling you's not telling, you know, because she's sure to tell you herself; only you'd better wait till she does before you say anything, for fear ...
— Six to Sixteen - A Story for Girls • Juliana Horatia Ewing

... shouldn't they go?" thought Trask. The fact that he was secretly in love with Marjorie Locke, and had allowed himself to believe that she rather liked him, was no reason why she should wait in Manila merely because he had told her that he expected to be in that city on ...
— Isle o' Dreams • Frederick F. Moore

... ground, weeping bitterly as he listened to the rumblings of Niagara which seemed to mock him as he grieved for the city which had perished at its birth. For now he realized without a word from Mordecai Noah that the dream had failed—that his people must wait a little longer for a real Messiah to lead them into the Land of Promise. Bitterest of all, even more bitter than the breaking of his dream, was the realization that Mordecai Noah, for all his lofty ideals, his generous motives, was not of the stuff of which leaders are made. ...
— The New Land - Stories of Jews Who Had a Part in the Making of Our Country • Elma Ehrlich Levinger

... but also helps them to attain it, and fulfil the righteous claims of the moral Law, by uniting Himself with them by the Spirit (viii. 1-10). Men are now in a new relation to God: they call Him Father, He sees in them His sons. Though with all creation we wait still in fruitful pain for the fulness of redemption, we wait with confident hope. The Spirit is with us to help and to pray, we remember God's high purpose for us, we have known His love in the past, Jesus in infinite exaltation ...
— The Books of the New Testament • Leighton Pullan

... "hidden sea," in which the inhabitants enjoy excellent fishing. With the ebb of the tide that spacious sea is left almost dry, and then many kinds of shellfish are caught, such as oysters and crabs. The Camucones entered that sea, with the intention of lying in wait for some capture, but when they least expected it they found their craft on dry ground. An Indian who was gathering the aforesaid shellfish saw them; and, recognizing them to be piratical enemies by the style of their craft, went ...
— The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898, Volume XXV, 1635-36 • Various

... "Then I will wait as long as you like, or send for my friends to give you every information you desire to have; or if you want me to give any proofs, in any way, ...
— The Dodge Club - or, Italy in 1859 • James De Mille

... the coast of Sicily and made for Tarentum. Epicydes, thus suddenly disappointed in such great expectations, to avoid returning to endeavour to raise the siege of a city, a great part of which was already in the hands of the enemy, sailed to Agrigentum, intending to wait the issue of the contest, rather than take any new measures ...
— The History of Rome; Books Nine to Twenty-Six • Titus Livius

... here early, and when Marie told him I was out he said he would wait until I came back. So he sat down—right here. Then, every five minutes, he called Madame Courcy and sent her up with a note. I was afraid of a scene, because madame spoke of sending for ...
— The Triflers • Frederick Orin Bartlett

... not do that, my boy. The bill won't amount to much; but the job may take some time—and where can I leave my little girl? I suppose you would not care to wait in the ...
— Golden Days for Boys and Girls - Volume VIII, No 25: May 21, 1887 • Various

... wait to hear what he would say. When I turned back to look at her, she was gone; and I only saw the level white cloud form itself again, close to the arch of the sun as it sank. And as the last edge of the sun disappeared, the form of Pthah faded into ...
— The Crown of Wild Olive • John Ruskin

... They afterwards wait on them at table, and accompany them to their beds, reciting other devout prayers. In another part of that establishment, princesses and other ladies practise the same offices of charity towards the female pilgrims. Here might we fancy that the primitive christians ...
— The Ceremonies of the Holy-Week at Rome • Charles Michael Baggs

... to Osborne Hamley, and declined by him. But he thought it right to call soon afterwards. It was the first time Molly had seen any of the family since she left the Hall, since Mrs Hamley's death; and there was so much that she wanted to ask. She tried to wait patiently till Mrs. Gibson had exhausted the first gush of her infinite nothings; and then Molly came in with her modest questions. How was the squire? Had he returned to his old habits? Had his health ...
— Wives and Daughters • Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell

... his infirmities, Charles was in such haste to chastise the French, and revenge himself on Henry—having succeeded in raising an army sixty thousand strong, besides seven thousand pioneers—that he rejected the prudent counsels of his generals, who begged him to wait until the spring, when Metz might be attacked with much greater advantage. But his excessive obstinacy, which had led to so many of his disasters, again prevailed. The Duc de Guise, now Governor of Metz, had put the citadel into a state of defence. The garrison was numerous, ...
— The Great Events by Famous Historians, Volume 9 • Various

... return from making the grand tour, Mr. Foker, Junior, had brought with him a polyglot valet, who took the place of Stoopid, and condescended to wait at dinner, attired in shirt fronts of worked muslin, with many gold studs and chains, upon his master and the elders of the family. This man, who was of no particular country, and spoke all languages indifferently ill, made himself useful to Mr. Harry ...
— The History of Pendennis • William Makepeace Thackeray

... boy; dear boy, not now. I must not—I cannot—I dare not yet! Wait a few days and you shall know all. Oh, it is hard to keep a secret from my boy! but then it is not only my secret, but another's! You do not think hard of me for withholding it now, do ...
— Hidden Hand • Emma Dorothy Eliza Nevitte Southworth

... above (Q. 3, A. 1). Wherefore inordinate words about matters of faith may lead to corruption of the faith; and hence it is that Pope Leo says in a letter to Proterius, Bishop of Alexandria: "The enemies of Christ's cross lie in wait for our every deed and word, so that, if we but give them the slightest pretext, they may accuse us mendaciously of ...
— Summa Theologica, Part II-II (Secunda Secundae) • Thomas Aquinas

... him on shoulder and returns to pants pressing.] Well, keep at it, old man. All things come to those who work while they wait. ...
— Class of '29 • Orrie Lashin and Milo Hastings

... dark depths of the sea, these Giant Cuttles wait for large fish, Crabs, or even their own relations, to come near. Like hideous, gigantic Spiders, they are the terror of the ocean caverns. They are so large that they have few enemies to fear. Indeed, it is surprising that any animal dares to attack ...
— Within the Deep - Cassell's "Eyes And No Eyes" Series, Book VIII. • R. Cadwallader Smith

... of China and of the world. The children even produce in triumph an English reading-book, though I must confess they do not seem to have profited by it much. Still, they can say "cat" when you show them a picture of the creature; which is more than I could do in Chinese. And China does not change? Wait a generation! This, remember, is a tiny village in the heart of the country, more than 1000 miles from the coast. And this is happening all over the Celestial Empire, I suppose. I start to return to my ...
— Appearances - Being Notes of Travel • Goldsworthy Lowes Dickinson

... of Mars were alive, and in full consciousness, and with souls like mine, and capable of intercourse with each other—whether they have bodies or not, I should assume that they knew one another. I should not wait for that fact to be definitely stated by a visitor to Mars who should return to earth. I should assume it without his stating it. Nay, I should require very strong evidence to make me believe the contrary. ...
— The Gospel of the Hereafter • J. Paterson-Smyth

... brought with it rain clouds. But they were unconscious of such accidents. Sabina longed for the cliffs again, so they turned homeward by Seaton and Thorncombe Beacon and Eype Mouth. Their talk ran upon marriage and Raymond swore that he could not wait long, while she urged the importance to ...
— The Spinners • Eden Phillpotts

... sheltered district, between me and the Hanger, sailing about in a placid, easy manner, and feasting on those insects which love to haunt a spot so secure from ruffling winds. As my principal object was to discover the place of their roosting, I took care to wait on them before they retired to rest, and was much pleased to find that for several evenings together, just at a quarter past five in the afternoon, they all scudded away in great haste towards the south-east, and darted down among the low shrubs above the cottages ...
— The Natural History of Selborne, Vol. 2 • Gilbert White

... brown curls and deep-blue eyes was making sand-caves on the shore. The countess spoke to her in passing, and left her staring at her two hands, which were full of silver coin. At the bridge the countess paused to wait for her friend. She saw her come out, attended by Mrs. Bailey: she saw Mrs. Bailey watch her, saw the little girl give her mother the money, and then she saw the woman, still carrying her baby in ...
— Lippincott's Magazine of Popular Literature and Science, Volume 22. October, 1878. • Various

... a few hours,—it is not more than due for his pragmatical interference in what concerned him not. Do you, Mr. Geddes, be so prudent as to take your horse and leave this place, which is growing every moment more unfit for the abode of a man of peace. You may wait the event ...
— Redgauntlet • Sir Walter Scott

... interests [he might have added "in proportion to their wealth"] that the State, in which they all owned a share, should not be looked upon so narrowly as a capitalistic enterprise. They could afford to allow the State to wait longer for its returns. ...
— Socialism As It Is - A Survey of The World-Wide Revolutionary Movement • William English Walling

... use now, Langdon," I called cheerfully. "Beg pardon for seeming to intrude. I misunderstood—or didn't hear where the servant said I was to wait. However, no harm done. So long! I'm off." But I made no move toward the door by which I had entered; instead, I advanced a few feet nearer the door from which ...
— The Deluge • David Graham Phillips

... found among the residents of a small country village, and those are kindness of heart and a love of gossip. The former showed itself in Sandgate when Albert Page went to those his family were indebted to, and, with much humiliation to himself, asked them to wait. Mr. Hobbs' reply is all that is necessary to quote, as it was a ...
— Uncle Terry - A Story of the Maine Coast • Charles Clark Munn

... Lowton, one of these Temple gourmands. "Wait a bit," said Mr. Lowton, tugging at Pen's gown—"the side-tables are very full, and there's only three benchers to eat ten dishes—if we wait, perhaps we shall get something from their table." And Pen looked with some amusement, as did ...
— The History of Pendennis • William Makepeace Thackeray

... goes wrong, it certainly won't be our fault. But let's face it—the chances are a thousand to one that something will go wrong. We'll just have to wait. And work." He looked at the Pornsens. "They're very much in love, aren't they? And she was receptive to the suggestion—beneath it all, she was burning to have a child, just like ...
— Where There's Hope • Jerome Bixby

... on the roof were well aware that there was little to do but to wait, and soon they would see which was to win, they or the fire; so they shifted their line of hose to the eastern front of the building—out of harm's way, for a little time, at least—and held the muzzle steady, watching ...
— The Two Vanrevels • Booth Tarkington

... "You wait a bit, my lad!" interrupted Ayscough. "I had my reasons—good 'uns. Now, look here, we're going to watch that door awhile. If the Jap comes out—as I've an idea he will—we're going to follow. And as you're younger, and slimmer, and less conspicuous than I am, if he should emerge, keep on the ...
— The Orange-Yellow Diamond • J. S. Fletcher

... find One and Two. Send them to me, and I will wait here for them," added Christy; and the men departed on the errand. "While I am waiting for them, Mr. Graines, you may go down to that group, and pick up what information ...
— A Victorious Union - SERIES: The Blue and the Gray—Afloat • Oliver Optic

... intimate and cordial communication from the start. At first Montgomery appears to have taken for granted that the Secessionist party at Richmond was so powerful that there was little need for the new government to do anything but wait But a surprise was in store for it During February and March its agents reported a wide-spread desire in the South to compromise on pretty nearly any terms that would not surrender the central Southern idea of state sovereignty. Thus an illusion of that day—as of this—was exploded, namely the ...
— Lincoln • Nathaniel Wright Stephenson

... orders that the carriage was to wait at the door. The servants might suspect, but that was all. Her maid had been discreet. She drew down her veil as she descended the steps, and told the coachman to drive ...
— The Crossing • Winston Churchill

... of their Committee said to an objector lately: "To me, there are the handwritings of four different men, the thoughts and powers of four different men, in the play. If you can't see them now, you must wait till, by study, you can. I can't give you eyes." To this argument he (Mr. F.) felt that it would be an insult to their understandings if he should attempt to add another word. Still, for those who were willing to try and learn, and ...
— A Study of Shakespeare • Algernon Charles Swinburne

... Hobhouse that I wrote to him a few days ago from Ferrara. It will therefore be idle in him or you to wait for any further answers or returns of proofs from Venice, as I have directed that no English letters be sent after me. The publication can be proceeded in without, and I am already sick of your remarks, to which I think not the least ...
— A Letter Book - Selected with an Introduction on the History and Art of Letter-Writing • George Saintsbury

... with Mr. Lorry can wait," he began, with a smile meant to be inviting, but which did not impress her ...
— Beverly of Graustark • George Barr McCutcheon

... but his spirits rose a little later when he found that he would only have to wait twenty minutes in the Lowell station before a slow train for Greentown would pick him up, and that he should still reach his destination before bedtime, and need never ...
— Mother Carey's Chickens • Kate Douglas Wiggin

... enslaved to evil, and his only hope lay in the recognition of his absolute inability to better himself, and in a humble reliance upon God's mercy. By faith only, not by conduct, could he be saved. Erasmus was willing to wait until every one agreed that the Church should be reformed. Luther had no patience with an institution which seemed to him to be leading souls to destruction by inducing men to rely upon their good works. Both men realized that they could ...
— An Introduction to the History of Western Europe • James Harvey Robinson

... sailed. Then spake the mate; "This mad sea shows his teeth to-night. He curls his lip, he lies in wait, With lifted teeth, as if to bite! Brave Admiral, say but one good word: What shall we do when hope is gone?" The words leapt like a leaping sword; "Sail on! ...
— Elson Grammer School Literature, Book Four. • William H. Elson and Christine Keck

... tell him what I thought on him, and encourage him in his noble doin's, and warn him in one or two things"—jest at that minit, sez Josiah, "I've lost my bandanny handkerchief;" and he told me, "To wait there for him, that he thought that he remembered where he had dropped it—back in a antick room in the back part of ...
— Samantha at the World's Fair • Marietta Holley

... "I shall wait for you," he said. "You will come out there." He raised himself upon his elbow and glanced at his friend's face. Linforth had retained the delicacy of feature, the fineness of outline which ten years before had called forth the admiration of Colonel Dewes. But ...
— The Broken Road • A. E. W. Mason

... You led me a fine dance. Wait, my beauty, I must see how you look after all this. ...
— Tales of Unrest • Joseph Conrad

... "Wait a minute. Now we are coming to something that tends to prove my theory true. Animals have souls, as you imply. Who can know them intimately and doubt it for an instant? Souls as immortal—or as mortal—as ours. And ...
— The Return Of The Soul - 1896 • Robert S. Hichens

... I could take you home at once," said young Rivers, who was less a rascal than a coward; "I wish I could take you home at once, but it cannot be. We must wait awhile." ...
— 'Lena Rivers • Mary J. Holmes

... this change was because Edmund had learnt at the eleventh hour that Rose would be at Groombridge, she had no right to be so quick-sighted. It was almost "Missish" of Rose, he told himself, to be so ready to think his heart in danger, and to be so unnecessarily tender of his feelings. She might wait for him to begin the attack before she ...
— Great Possessions • Mrs. Wilfrid Ward

... centre of the island, where the fort was supposed to be situated, as a signal to some of the junks which might have been at anchor near the entrance of one of the channels. As Captain Po-ho could not give a very exact account of the position of the fort, Captain Rogers thought it prudent to wait until daybreak before commencing the attack. Of the character of the enemy, however, he had no doubt, from the information obtained at Chusan. They were a daring band of pirates, who had long been the ...
— The Three Admirals • W.H.G. Kingston

... exclaimed Joe; "enough to carry us to a stream or a well, and we'll be all right. We have provisions enough, and, with water, we could wait a month without suffering; but ...
— Five Weeks in a Balloon • Jules Verne

... arise across the Atlantic a trading partner behind a single external tariff similar to ours with an economy which nearly equals our own. Will we in this country adapt our thinking to these new prospects and patterns—or will we wait until events ...
— State of the Union Addresses of John F. Kennedy • John F. Kennedy

... follows Hedon, the Voluptuous, and a courtier; one that ranks himself even with Anaides, or the Impudent, a gallant, and, that's my part; one that keeps Laughter, Gelaia, the daughter of Folly, a wench in boy's attire, to wait on him—These, in the court, meet with Amorphus, or the deformed, a traveller that hath drunk of the fountain, and there tells the wonders of the water. They presently dispatch away their pages with bottles to fetch of it, and themselves go to visit the ladies. But I should ...
— Cynthia's Revels • Ben Jonson

... of a belief that now quickly, before the sun went down, the man himself would make all known by public proclamation. At the close of the scene, consequently, Ben-Hur had withdrawn from the procession, and seated himself upon a stone to wait its passage. ...
— Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ • Lew Wallace

... letter which Boyd Madras had wished to be made public. (I had given it to him just before the burial, and he was acting as though Boyd Madras was really dead—he was quite ignorant of our conspiracy.) I was about to move on, but Mrs. Falchion touched my arm. "Wait," she said. She stood and heard the letter through. Then we walked on, she musing. Presently she said: "It is a ...
— The Judgment House • Gilbert Parker

... little late to-day," she said, "but he wished me not to wait for him. And how are you after our parliamentary banquet?" she said, turning to Endymion; "I will introduce you to the ...
— Endymion • Benjamin Disraeli

... friends in France, I will make good use of it for your service in our periodical papers. They complain everywhere of knowing nothing of your affairs, but what the English wish Europe should know; and on this subject we have often to wait some months before the truth is unfolded from a heap of impostures, which do not fail sometimes to answer the malice of your enemies in leaving false impressions on minds, which I wish to be able to ...
— The Diplomatic Correspondence of the American Revolution, Vol. IX • Various

... "Wait a minute, my dear," remonstrated Farrington. "It's jist as well fer ye to consider this reasonable proposition fust as last. Yer dad's gittin' old now, so he can't last much longer; ...
— The Fourth Watch • H. A. Cody

... The next moment, before I was aware, another figure sat on the same seat, arms were thrown round my neck. It was my old Irish nurse, who had come up from Wexford to see me, and had been lying in wait ...
— The Confessions of a Caricaturist, Vol. 1 (of 2) • Harry Furniss

... all the misfortunes and mishaps of the day. The unpropitious toilet; the aggravation of 'Obin and Ichard'; the delay caused by Jog being sick with his cigar; the divergence into Hackberry Dean; and the long protracted wait at the toll-bar. Reviewing all the circumstances fairly and dispassionately, Mr. Sponge came to the determination of having nothing more to do with Mr. Jogglebury Crowdey in the hunting way. These, or similar cogitations and resolutions were, ...
— Mr. Sponge's Sporting Tour • R. S. Surtees

... to look for mushrooms in the grass, or reading the labels on the boxes—these were those for whom there were not glasses enough. "Have you had tea?" Olga Mihalovna kept asking, and the guest so addressed begged her not to trouble, and said, "I will wait," though it would have suited her better for the visitors not to ...
— The Party and Other Stories • Anton Chekhov

... I will fill my heart with thy silence and endure it. I will keep still and wait like the night with starry vigil and its head bent low ...
— Gitanjali • Rabindranath Tagore

... that in this world each young person is to wait until he or she finds that precise counterpart who alone of all creation was meant for him or her, and then fall instantly in love with it, is pretty enough, only it is not Nature's way. It is not ...
— The Autocrat of the Breakfast-Table • Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. (The Physician and Poet not the Jurist)

... work and prosper with noble rewards. He that will not learn them, Nature is against him, he shall not be able to do work in Nature's empire,—not in hers. Perpetual mutiny, contention, hatred, isolation, execration shall wait on his footsteps, till all men discern that the thing which he attains, however golden it look or be, is not success, ...
— Past and Present - Thomas Carlyle's Collected Works, Vol. XIII. • Thomas Carlyle

... perverse tyranny! How she makes me wait for an humble audience, though she has done writing for some time! A prince begging for her upon his knees should not prevail upon me to spare her, if I can but get her to London—Oons! Jack, I believe I have bit my lip ...
— Clarissa, Volume 3 (of 9) • Samuel Richardson

... held levees at Alexandria, and among the gentry of the country, who paid him their respects, were our twins of Castlewood, who mounted their best nags, took with them their last London suits, and, with their two negro-boys, in smart liveries behind them, rode in state to wait upon the great man. He was sulky and angry with the provincial gentry, and scarce took any notice of the young gentlemen, only asking, casually, of his aide-de-camp at dinner, who the young Squire Gawkeys were in blue and ...
— The Virginians • William Makepeace Thackeray

... rebuffed. Once a card has been admitted, the visitor must be admitted also, no matter how inconvenient receiving her may be. You may send a message that you are dressing but will be very glad to see her if she can wait ten minutes. The visitor can either wait or say she is pressed for time. But if she does not wait, then ...
— Etiquette • Emily Post

... suffer me, Sir, to attend you? (Polly shall wait your answer). I dare not come without your permission; for should you be as angry as you were, I know not how I shall bear it. But if you say I may come down, I hope to satisfy you, that I intended not any offence. Do, dear Sir, permit me to attend you, I can say ...
— Pamela (Vol. II.) • Samuel Richardson

... imaginable accident the government were overthrown and a labor dictatorship declared, it could never "stay put." No one who knows the American business class will even dream that it would under any circumstances surrender to a revolution perpetrated by a minority, or that it would wait for foreign intervention before starting hostilities. A Bolshevist coup d'etat in America would mean a civil war to the bitter end, and a war in which the numerous class of farmers would join the capitalists in the defense of the institution of ...
— A History of Trade Unionism in the United States • Selig Perlman

... managed to avoid notice, and reached the appointed spot at the desired time, when the moon, rising behind the palace itself, threw this portion of the wall, and the ground at its foot, into the deepest shadow. Sentries were posted both within and without the walls, and it was necessary to wait until the one on this beat had turned his back, and then run singly from one patch of shade to another. All once safely assembled at the foot of the wall, Charteris produced a dark lantern, and while the rest stood so as to shield him from observation, hunted for the two little balls of ...
— The Path to Honour • Sydney C. Grier

... exclaimed Menes, for it was he; "I see that Thou hast changed for official reasons. Thou hast a smoother face, whiter hands, and a gold chain on thy neck. Mother Nut of the heavenly ocean would have to wait long ...
— The Pharaoh and the Priest - An Historical Novel of Ancient Egypt • Boleslaw Prus

... some light upon the character and situation of Beckendorff. With the clue to his conduct which my chance meeting with him yesterday morning has afforded us, the only point for your Highness to determine is as to the length of time you will resolve to wait for his communication. As to your final agreement together, with your Highness' settled views and decided purpose, all the difficulty of negotiation will be on his side. Whatever, my dear Prince," continued ...
— Vivian Grey • The Earl of Beaconsfield

... Inca Yupanqui found himself so strong and that he had been joined by so many people, he determined not to wait for the nomination of his father, much less for his death, before he rose with the people of Cuzco with the further intention of obtaining the assent of those without. With this object he caused a grand sacrifice ...
— History of the Incas • Pedro Sarmiento de Gamboa

... it was understood that Jim was to call upon the president and submit his credentials. Humanly speaking, the billet was secured. Nothing remained but to find Jim. To my surprise, however, Ajax urged me to wait ...
— Bunch Grass - A Chronicle of Life on a Cattle Ranch • Horace Annesley Vachell

... did cruel and wicked things. When Rheims was captured, before he became a Christian, a golden vase was taken by some soldiers from the church. The bishop asked Clovis to have it returned, and Clovis bade him wait until the division of spoils. All the valuable things taken by soldiers in war were divided among the whole army, each man getting his share according to rank. ...
— Famous Men of The Middle Ages • John H. Haaren, LL.D. and A. B. Poland, Ph.D.

... wait some time for the desired fine day. The equinoctial storms would have their way, as usual, and Ellen thought they were longer than ever this year. But after many stormy days had tried her patience, there was at ...
— The Wide, Wide World • Elizabeth Wetherell

... were on a level, in appearance at least, and I now flattered myself that my fine form, my broad chest, and narrow waist, would make me an object of admiration. I called to one of the dalaks (bathing men) to wait upon me, and to go through the different operations of rubbing with the hand, and of the friction with the hair bag, and I also ordered him to shave my head, to get ready the necessary materials for dying my beard, moustaches, and curls, ...
— The Adventures of Hajji Baba of Ispahan • James Morier

... phenomenon having been suggested for explanation, we are unable at the time to think of any cause—to frame any hypothesis about it; we must then wait for the phenomenon to occur again, and, once more observing its course and accompaniments and trying to recall its antecedents, do our best to conceive an hypothesis, and proceed as before. Thus, in the first great epidemic ...
— Logic - Deductive and Inductive • Carveth Read

... that some of her longing for home might not be also from pain of separation? And that was now no happy thought to me. Well, I must wait and find out all that. If it was in my power that longing should be stilled, and then I might know the best and worst of all that ...
— A Sea Queen's Sailing • Charles Whistler

... road which led to the house. A woman, fearless of the night, because Life had already done its worst to her, stumbled up the stony, overgrown way. The moon shone fitfully among the flying clouds, and she guided herself by its uncertain gleams, pausing now and then, in complete darkness, to wait ...
— A Spinner in the Sun • Myrtle Reed



Words linked to "Wait" :   extension, look forward, lie in wait, time lag, delay, hold on, anticipate, lying in wait, bushwhack, inactivity, moratorium, hold out, break, cool one's heels, lurk, stick around, hold, hold off, await, stick about, work, hold the line, hold back, interruption, act, postponement, pause, suspension, hang on, move, stand by, scupper, waiting



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