hurry up and wait

verb

To hurry to complete a task or arrive at a destination by a specified time, only for nothing to happen, due to other requirements that have yet to be satisfied.

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Meanings

verbhurry up and wait (third-person singular simple present hurries up and waits, present participle hurrying up and waiting, simple past and past participle hurried up and waited)

present singular third person hurries up and waits · participle present hurrying up and waiting · participle past hurried up and waited · past hurried up and waited

  1. humorousidiomaticTo hurry to complete a task or arrive at a destination by a specified time, only for nothing to happen, due to other requirements that have yet to be satisfied.

Origin

hurry up + wait

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

hurry up and wait. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hurry%20up%20and%20wait

MLA

“hurry up and wait.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hurry%20up%20and%20wait. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “hurry up and wait,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hurry%20up%20and%20wait.

Source: hurry up and wait on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.