expect

Definition from Wiktionary, a free dictionary

Contents 1 English 1.1 Etymology 1.2 Pronunciation 1.3 Verb 1.3.1 Usage notes 1.3.2 Synonyms 1.3.3 Translations 1.3.4 Derived terms 1.4 Anagrams

[edit] English

[edit] Etymology

Latin expectatum (“‘to look out for, await, expect’”), ex (“‘out’”) + spectare (“‘to look at’”). Confer spectacle.

[edit] Pronunciation

• IPA: /ɪkˈspɛkt/
•  Audio (US)^{help, file}
• Rhymes: -ɛkt

[edit] Verb

to expect (third-person singular simple present expects, present participle expecting, simple past and past participle expected)

1. To look for (mentally); to look forward to, as to something that is believed to be about to happen or come; to have a previous apprehension of, whether of good or evil; to look for with some confidence; to anticipate; -- often followed by an infinitive, sometimes by a clause (with, or without, that); as I expect to receive wages; I expect that the troops will be defeated.
   • Good: I will expect you. Shakespeare
   • Expecting thy reply. Shakespeare
   • The Somersetshire or yellow regiment ... was expected to arrive on the following day. Thomas Babington Macaulay.
2. to consider obligatory or required;
3. to consider reasonably due;

   You are expected to get the task done by the end of next week.

4. (obsolete) To wait for; to await.
   • Let's in, and there expect their coming. Shakespeare

[edit] Usage notes

• Expect is a mental act and has always a reference to the future, to some coming event; as a person expects to die, or he expects to survive. Think and believe have reference to the past and present, as well as to the future; as I think the mail has arrived; I believe he came home yesterday, that he is he is at home now. There is a not uncommon use of expect, which is a confusion of the two; as, I expect the mail has arrived; I expect he is at home. This misuse should be avoided. Await is a physical or moral act. We await that which, when it comes, will affect us personally. We expect what may, or may not, interest us personally. See anticipate.
• This is a catenative verb that takes the to infinitive. See Appendix:English catenative verbs

[edit] Synonyms

• anticipate
• look for
• await
• hope

[edit] Translations

[edit] Derived terms

• expectation noun
• expected adjective
• expecting adjective
• unexpected

[edit] Anagrams

• except