# "waiting for" vs. "waiting on" **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 3, 2021, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/waiting-for-vs-waiting-on/941299 "2021-05-03T16:06:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![ratatoskK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ratatoskk/32/2987_2.png) [@ratatoskK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ratatoskK)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2021, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/waiting-for-vs-waiting-on/941299/21 "2021-05-03T22:43:42Z")
One of my pet peeves! I agree with the OP; I say “waiting for.” But I’ve worked with many people who say “waiting on.” For example, we had to assign some work order statuses and someone chose “waiting on approval,” which I tried to correct to “waiting for approval,” but I eventually had to give up. I guess a lot of people think “waiting on” is OK, or they can’t tell the difference, or they don’t care. ---
**Author:** ![Springtime\_for\_Spacers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Springtime\_for\_Spacers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Springtime_for_Spacers)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2021, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/waiting-for-vs-waiting-on/941299/22 "2021-05-03T23:14:05Z")
> [@Andy\_L](#): > > I get the since that “waiting on” is often used to in situations in which someone can’t proceed until something happens. So in answer to the question “What are you doing?” you might say “I’m waiting for the bus” but in answer to the question “Why are you just standing there?” the answer “I’m waiting on the bus” indicates that you’d be happy to be moving towards your goal, but you can’t - until the bus gets here. And yet, to me, if you are waiting _on the bus_ then you are physically on the bus perhaps waiting for it to set off. ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2021, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/waiting-for-vs-waiting-on/941299/23 "2021-05-03T23:39:26Z")
Ah. That’s yet another way to use “on”! In that case, “on” is part of “on the bus” not part of “waiting on”. ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2021, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/waiting-for-vs-waiting-on/941299/24 "2021-05-03T23:48:48Z")
> [https://www.grammarphobia.com/blog/2010/06/waiting-on.html](https://www.grammarphobia.com/blog/2010/06/waiting-on.html) > > Another source, _Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary_ (11th ed.) has an interesting thought: “One reason for the continuing use of _wait on_ may lie in its being able to suggest protracted or irritating waits better than _wait for._ ” > > The dictionary gives several examples to support this idea, including one from Charles Lindbergh: “for two days I’ve been _waiting on_ the weather.” ---
**Author:** ![ALOHA\_HATER](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/76d3ee/32.png) [@ALOHA\_HATER](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ALOHA_HATER)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 6:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/waiting-for-vs-waiting-on/941299/25 "2021-05-04T06:42:34Z")
I’m tempted to make a comparison to another use of on, the “on me,” like in “my dog died on me.” ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 7:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/waiting-for-vs-waiting-on/941299/26 "2021-05-04T07:13:12Z")
> [@Springtime\_for\_Spacers](#): > > And yet, to me, if you are waiting _on the bus_ then you are physically on the bus perhaps waiting for it to set off. As someone who says “waiting on” all the time, I wouldn’t use “waiting for” by itself in that situation. I’d only use “I’m waiting for the bus” to mean I’m waiting for it to arrive. The same is true if I say I’m waiting for a person. I could maybe say “I’m waiting for the bus to leave,” but not just “I’m waiting for the bus.” However, “I’m waiting on the bus” would be ambiguous, and would not imply any location. It could mean I’m waiting on the bus to arrive, so I can leave. It could mean I’m waiting on the bus to leave because I’m inside it. It could mean I’m waiting on the bus to move out of the way. If I wanted to indicate location, I’d need extra words. I could say “I’m waiting here on the bus”–though that is still a bit ambiguous. “I’m waiting inside the bus” is probably the least ambiguous. Per @Andy_L’s cite, I do agree that “waiting for” seems to be more passive to me, while “waiting on” seems more active. If I’m _waiting for_ a phone call, that implies I’m going about my day, doing what I would normally do, while expecting a phone call. If I’m _waiting on_ an phone call, that implies that I’m being held up and need the phone call to occur before I can continue with my day. However, the line is fuzzy. I would still sometimes wait for a person, even if said waiting is holding me up. It just implies the wait has not gotten to the point of being annoying (yet). ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 7:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/waiting-for-vs-waiting-on/941299/27 "2021-05-04T07:33:13Z")
> [@Andy\_L](#): > > Ah. That’s yet another way to use “on”! In that case, “on” is part of “on the bus” not part of “waiting on”. We ride _on_ a bus or boat, but we ride _in_ a car. Do we ride _in_ an airplane or _on_ an airplane? In English, we are _at_ the supermarket or _at_ the office. In Hebrew, we are _in_ the supermarket or _in_ the office. In American English, we are _in the_ hospital, but _at_ school or college. A house may be in the middle of the street. But can a railroad be in the middle of a house? There’s a great big door in the front of the house, There’s a little old door in the back. But we can’t have doors in the middle of the house, 'Cause that’s the railroad track. [In the Middle of the House](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h4BYdTrkWoo) ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 8:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/waiting-for-vs-waiting-on/941299/28 "2021-05-04T08:00:51Z")
The phrase I heard so often growing up was “waiting dinner on you”. It doesn’t get better with the simple change to “waiting dinner for you”. ---
**Author:** ![Temporary\_Name](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8c91f0/32.png) [@Temporary\_Name](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Temporary_Name)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 8:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/waiting-for-vs-waiting-on/941299/29 "2021-05-04T08:09:43Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > The waiter also waits tables, with no preposition. But if you described a waiter as waiting on customers, I would interpret that as the same as waiting for customers. To me, these have VERY different meanings (as I am sure someone has already mentioned- I read this far and decided to reply). Waiting **on** customers means bringing people food and cocktails or pie and coffee depending upon setting. Waiting **for** customers means staring out the window of an empty establishment wishing the rain would stop so someone would come in and order something and then leave a big fat tip! ---
**Author:** ![Mallard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Mallard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mallard)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 10:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/waiting-for-vs-waiting-on/941299/30 "2021-05-04T10:45:32Z")
I was “waiting on” my friend Jack who is going to “try and” fix the leaking pipe. OR: I was “waiting for” my friend Jack who was going to “try to” fix the leaking pipe. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 12:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/waiting-for-vs-waiting-on/941299/31 "2021-05-04T12:07:29Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > We ride _on_ a bus or boat, but we ride _in_ a car. > Do we ride _in_ an airplane or _on_ an airplane? According to John Denver, it’s _on_. Seems to me that if you can stand up while travelling, it’s “on”, but if you have to sit it’s “in”. So I’m leaving _on_ a jet plane if it’s a 757 and _in_ a jet plane if it’s an F-15. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 12:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/waiting-for-vs-waiting-on/941299/32 "2021-05-04T12:31:58Z")
> [@74westy](#): > > Prepositions are completely arbitrary but for some reason, in our minds, our usage is correct and others are wrong. And however many times you point this out… > [@ratatoskK](#): > > One of my pet peeves! I agree with the OP; I say “waiting for.” But I’ve worked with many people who say “waiting on.” For example, we had to assign some work order statuses and someone chose “waiting on approval,” which I tried to correct to “waiting for approval,” but I eventually had to give up. I guess a lot of people think “waiting on” is OK, or they can’t tell the difference, or they don’t care. Yes, it’s frustrating how other people don’t grasp that their dialect of English is wrong, and yours is correct, isn’t it? What’s even more frustrating is how all those foreigners won’t abandon their incomprehensible languages and switch to English. Maybe they can’t tell the difference? Or they just don’t care. ---
**Author:** ![ratatoskK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ratatoskk/32/2987_2.png) [@ratatoskK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ratatoskK)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/waiting-for-vs-waiting-on/941299/33 "2021-05-04T13:28:42Z")
> **[Learn English: Wait, waiting on or waiting for? - ABC Education](https://www.abc.net.au/education/learn-english/learn-english-wait-waiting-on-or-waiting-for/8837546#:~:text=To%20'wait%20on'%20someone%20means,make%20a%20cup%20of%20tea.%22)** > > Take a look at the verb 'wait' and learn the differences between 'waiting for' and 'waiting on'. ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/waiting-for-vs-waiting-on/941299/34 "2021-05-04T14:20:47Z")
From the Oxford English dictionary: “To Wait On or Upon” > **9.** To remain in one place in expectation of = [_to wait for_ at sense 7a](https://oed.com/view/Entry/225136?rskey=w4pZR0&result=1&isAdvanced=false#eid15221952). Also, more generally, to wait for ([5b](https://oed.com/view/Entry/225136?rskey=w4pZR0&result=1&isAdvanced=false#eid15221550)). > > 1694 tr. F. Martens _Voy. Spitzbergen_ 7 in _Narbrough’s Acct. Several Late Voy._ We were forced to wait on him above half an hour, before he came from underneath the Ice. > > 1817 W. Sewall _Diary_ 2 May (1930) 14/1 I proceeded to the Academy and agreed to enter there upon condition that the Professor would wait on me until the next winter. > > 1865 O. L. Jackson _Colonel’s Diary_ (1922) 227 We have been waiting on the pay department. > > 1915 J. Buchan _Thirty-nine Steps_ vi. 135 He…raised his placid eyebrows and waited on me to speak. > > 1931 _Amer. Speech_ **7** 20 _Wait on_ , wait for, the Biblical sense. ‘When I got there, John was waiting on me.’ (Widespread.) > > 1955 F. O’ Connor _Wise Blood_ v. 85 He…darted after Hazel Motes. ‘Wait on me!’ he shouted. > > 1960 _Observer_ 7 Feb. 13/4 The nation waits on the railwaymen, to see if there will be a strike or not. > > 1984 P. Turnbull _Big Money_ ix. 153 ‘I was just waiting on you two coming back.’ He stood and reached for his coat. > > [(Hide quotations)](https://oed.com/view/Entry/225136?rskey=w4pZR0&result=1&isAdvanced=false#) > > Thesaurus » > > **10.** To attend as or in the manner of a servant to the personal requirements of; to minister to the comfort of. †Also in phrases, to wait on the cup, the trencher, the table (cf. [9b](https://oed.com/view/Entry/225136?rskey=w4pZR0&result=1&isAdvanced=false#eid15222800)). _to wait on (a person) hand and foot_ : see [_to wait on (also wait upon, serve) (a person) (†to) hand and foot_ at hand n. Phrases 6a(b)](https://oed.com/view/Entry/83801#eid1987637). > > 1509–10 _Act 1 Hen. VIII_ c. 14 §1 No servyng manne waytyng uppon his maister…were eny garded Hose. > > 1552 R. Huloet _Abcedarium Anglico Latinum_ Wayte on the cup, _ad cyathos stare_ . > > _a_ 1557 J. Cheke tr. _Gospel St. Matthew_ (1843) iv. 11 Then let ye devel him go, and lo angels cam vnto him and waited on him. > > 1575 G. Gascoigne _Glasse of Gouernem._ iv. v. sig. Iiii Wee should haue beene fayne to wayte on the table, and to bee contented with their leauings after supper. > > 1602 _Kyd’s Spanish Trag._ (new ed.) ii. sig. D3v His Maiestie the other day did grace him With waiting on his cup. > > 1605 N. Breton _I pray you be not Angrie_ sig. Cv To spende my time…onely for…waighting on a Trencher, looking on a faire House. > > 1615 G. Sandys _Relation of Journey_ 80 When they grow old, they most grow contemptible, being put to do the drudgeries of the house, and many times to waite on their children. > > 1749 H. Fielding _Tom Jones_ III. vii. xv. 135 ‘It is not my business,’ answered the Drawer, ‘to wait upon the Chambers…’ ‘If you come to that,’ answered the Maid, ‘it is not my business to wait upon Gentlemen.’ View more context for this quotation > > 1847 F. Marryat _Children of New Forest_ I. iv. 56 You can have no servants to wait upon you. > > 1865 Mrs. H. Wood _Mildred Arkell_ I. xi When I was only six years old I had to wait on Mamma and Charlotte. > > 1901 T. J. Alldridge _Sherbro_ xii. 114 He is waited upon hand and foot. ---
**Author:** ![hibernicus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hibernicus/32/2802_2.png) [@hibernicus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hibernicus)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/waiting-for-vs-waiting-on/941299/35 "2021-05-04T17:41:26Z")
> [@ratatoskK](#): > > For example, we had to assign some work order statuses and someone chose “waiting on approval,” which I tried to correct to “waiting for approval,” Change it to “awaiting approval” and everyone will be happy. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/waiting-for-vs-waiting-on/941299/36 "2021-05-04T18:26:30Z")
How do you feel about “[awaiting on](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Awaiting_on_You_All)”? ---
**Author:** ![Tzigone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@Tzigone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tzigone)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/waiting-for-vs-waiting-on/941299/37 "2021-05-04T18:48:10Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > For me, also an American, it’s always sounded like the house is physically in the middle of a street when they sang “in the middle of our street.” Same here. I recall picturing it that way when I heard it (I was a child then, though, I admit). Also, after reading the opening post, I though of the song “Waitin’ on Joe” - haven’t heard it in years, and didn’t particularly care for it, but the usage never seemed odd to me. ---
**Author:** ![hibernicus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hibernicus/32/2802_2.png) [@hibernicus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hibernicus)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/waiting-for-vs-waiting-on/941299/38 "2021-05-04T20:02:47Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > How do you feel about “[awaiting on](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Awaiting_on_You_All)”? An abomination. But “a-waiting on” would be acceptable. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/waiting-for-vs-waiting-on/941299/39 "2021-05-04T20:26:14Z")
Good thing I was waiting _for_ Godot. He’s a horrible tipper! ---
**Author:** ![Hatchie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hatchie/32/3983_2.png) [@Hatchie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hatchie)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2021, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/waiting-for-vs-waiting-on/941299/40 "2021-05-04T23:07:37Z")
My sister (we’re from the Boston suburbs) likes to tell a story about working as a waitress in Nashville, TN, and a young local guy she was waiting on kept asking if she wanted him to “wait on” her. She took it as some sort of weak joke. She was surprised when she found him outside the diner at quitting time, expecting her to go home with him (uh-uh). That’s how she learned one particular idiom. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/waiting-for-vs-waiting-on/941299.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/waiting-for-vs-waiting-on/941299.md?page=3)