To lie in wait

To lie in wait
Wait Wait, n. [OF. waite, guaite, gaite, F. guet watch, watching, guard, from OHG. wahta. See {Wait}, v. i.] [1913 Webster] 1. The act of waiting; a delay; a halt. [1913 Webster]

There is a wait of three hours at the border Mexican town of El Paso. --S. B. Griffin. [1913 Webster]

2. Ambush. ``An enemy in wait.'' --Milton. [1913 Webster]

3. One who watches; a watchman. [Obs.] [1913 Webster]

4. pl. Hautboys, or oboes, played by town musicians; not used in the singular. [Obs.] --Halliwell. [1913 Webster]

5. pl. Musicians who sing or play at night or in the early morning, especially at Christmas time; serenaders; musical watchmen. [Written formerly {wayghtes}.] [1913 Webster]

Hark! are the waits abroad? --Beau. & Fl. [1913 Webster]

The sound of the waits, rude as may be their minstrelsy, breaks upon the mild watches of a winter night with the effect of perfect harmony. --W. Irving. [1913 Webster]

{To lay wait}, to prepare an ambuscade.

{To lie in wait}. See under 4th {Lie}. [1913 Webster]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

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  • lie in wait (for somebody) — lie in ˈwait (for sb) idiom to hide, waiting to surprise, attack or catch sb • He was surrounded by reporters who had been lying in wait for him. Main entry: ↑lieidiom …   Useful english dictionary

  • lie in wait — index lurk, prowl Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 …   Law dictionary

  • lie in wait for — index ambush Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 …   Law dictionary

  • lie in wait — verb wait in hiding to attack (Freq. 1) • Syn: ↑ambush, ↑scupper, ↑bushwhack, ↑waylay, ↑lurk, ↑ambuscade • Derivationally related forms: ↑ambuscade …   Useful english dictionary

  • lie in wait — 1. to stay hidden, ready to attack. Police said the suspect was lying in wait in a dark hallway. This person was found behind a wall, as if he were lying in wait for someone. 2. to delay doing something until the best time for it. The smart thing …   New idioms dictionary

  • lie in wait — watch from hiding in order to attack or surprise someone The police decided to lie in wait for the bank robbers to appear at the bank …   Idioms and examples

  • To lie in wait — Lie Lie, v. i. [imp. {Lay} (l[=a]); p. p. {Lain} (l[=a]n), ({Lien} (l[imac] [e^]n), Obs.); p. pr. & vb. n. {Lying}.] [OE. lien, liggen, AS. licgan; akin to D. liggen, OHG. ligen, licken, G. liegen, Icel. liggja, Sw. ligga, Dan. ligge, Goth. ligan …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • lie in wait — Synonyms and related words: abide, ambuscade, ambush, await, bide, couch, creep, gumshoe, lay for, lay wait, lay wait for, lie in ambush, lurk, mark time, nightwalk, prowl, pussyfoot, shadow, sit up for, skulk, slink, sneak, stalk, stay up for,… …   Moby Thesaurus

  • lie in wait — {v. phr.} To watch from hiding in order to attack or surprise someone; to ambush. * /The driver of the stage coach knew that the thieves were lying in wait somewhere along the road./ …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • lie in wait — {v. phr.} To watch from hiding in order to attack or surprise someone; to ambush. * /The driver of the stage coach knew that the thieves were lying in wait somewhere along the road./ …   Dictionary of American idioms

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