wait up
Britishverb
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to delay going to bed in order to await some event
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informal to halt and pause in order that another person may catch up
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Postpone going to bed in anticipation of someone or something, as in My parents always wait up until I get home, no matter how late it is . [Mid-1800s]
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Stop or pause so that another can catch up, as in Let's wait up for the stragglers , or Don't walk so fast; wait up for me . [ Colloquial ]
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Other times, she might wait up to an hour to use a dirty toilet shared with thousands of other people.
From New York Times • Feb. 24, 2024
She's been told she will have to wait up to three years to be seen at a pain clinic.
From BBC • Dec. 19, 2023
So migrants - many of them families with young children - are having to wait up to a week to get the chance to surrender themselves.
From BBC • Dec. 8, 2023
In some cases, migrants may wait up to a decade for a court date.
From Seattle Times • Nov. 1, 2023
He thought he would wait up for her, too.
From "The Hot Zone" by Richard Preston
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
