What does await mean?
'Await' is a transitive verb meaning to wait for something or someone, remaining in a state of expectation until the awaited event occurs. Unlike its more casual cousin 'wait', which can stand alone without an object, 'await' must always be followed by what is being anticipated: you await a reply, await trial, or await instructions. The word also works in a second sense where the object is not the person doing the waiting but the thing lying ahead — a welcome awaits the traveller, or punishment awaits the guilty. Slightly more formal than 'wait' in tone, it appears frequently in official, legal, and literary contexts, lending gravity to the act of anticipation. Its connotation is typically neutral to positive, suggesting purposeful patience rather than idle delay. Derived from Old North French 'awaiteir', related to 'watch', it has been part of English since the medieval period and remains a precise, elegant choice whenever expectation needs expressing.
To wait for; to remain in expectation of something or someone until they arrive or occur.
"The committee awaits your response before finalising the schedule."
Always transitive — 'await' must take a direct object.
(Of a thing) to be in store for; to be ready to meet or greet someone.
"Adventure awaits those brave enough to leave the harbour."
In this sense the roles are reversed: the awaited thing does the awaiting.
'Await' is one of the rare English verbs that refuses to work alone — it must always have an object, making it grammatically clingy by design.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of await
'Await' entered Middle English from Old North French 'awaiteir', itself derived from a Germanic root shared with words like 'watch' and 'wake', giving it a deep kinship with the language's vocabulary of vigilance and expectation. The word has carried its core sense of waiting expectantly since its adoption into English in the medieval period. Its Germanic origins connect it to other watchful terms, reflecting a common conceptual thread of alertness directed toward something yet to come.
Usage notes
'Await' carries a slightly formal register compared with 'wait', and it is transitive only — it requires a direct object. It often conveys a sense of anticipation of something significant rather than idle waiting.
Don't confuse with
'Wait' can stand alone as an intransitive verb (just wait), while 'await' always takes an object — you await something, never just await.