wait for vs wait on

[ostap77]

I've heard both "wait for" vs "wait on" in the context

"What took you so long? We've been waiting for/on half an hour for you."

Any difference?

 

[apbl]

You can wait for somebody and you can wait for something and you can wait for a period of time:

I'm waiting for Bob.
He waited for the bus.
We have been waiting for two hours.

To wait on usually means to serve:

He waits on his children. (He does everything for them.)
I'm waiting on table two. (I'm serving table two.)

But it can have the same meaning as to wait for when you are expecting some kind of result before making a decision:

We are waiting on/for the outcome of next week's meeting before deciding what to do.

In the example that you give, the use of "on" is incorrct.

 

[ostap77]

You can wait for somebody and you can wait for something and you can wait for a period of time:

I'm waiting for Bob.
He waited for the bus.
We have been waiting for two hours.

To wait on usually means to serve:

He waits on his children. (He does everything for them.)
I'm waiting on table two. (I'm serving table two.)

But it can have the same meaning as to wait for when you are expecting some kind of result before making a decision:

We are waiting on/for the outcome of next week's meeting before deciding what to do.

In the example that you give, the use of "on" is incorrct.

The thing is that I heard from native speakers.

 

[bhaisahab]

The thing is that I heard from native speakers.

"What took you so long? We've been waiting on half an hour for you."
I would be astonished if you heard the above from a native speaker.

 

[ostap77]

"What took you so long? We've been waiting on half an hour for you."
I would be astonished if you heard the above from a native speaker.

You might well hear it if you watch a movie "Kelly's Heroes" with young Clint Eastwood staring in it.

 

[bhaisahab]

You might well hear it if you watch a movie "Kelly's Heroes" with young Clint Eastwood staring in it.

I could believe that he said "We've been waiting on you for half an hour", but not "...waiting on half an hour for you."

 

[apbl]

I agree: "We've been waiting on you for half an hour" is possible although if the meaning is not intended to be "serving you" then I would say that it is still incorrect.

"Waiting on" + time expression is without doubt incorrect.

 

[ostap77]

I could believe that he said "We've been waiting on you for half an hour", but not "...waiting on half an hour for you."

I've listened to it again. A paltoon of American GIs is about to go through the enemy lines.

"Let's get moving.And stay close to me, huh. I don't want to be waiting on anyone." Time is 00:42:53

 

[ostap77]

I've listened to it again. A paltoon of American GIs is about to go through the enemy lines.

"Let's get moving.And stay close to me, huh. I don't want to be waiting on anyone." Time is 00:42:53

I would like to bring it up once again.What would an everage American say?

 

[riquecohen]

I agree: "We've been waiting on you for half an hour" is possible although if the meaning is not intended to be "serving you" then I would say that it is still incorrect.

"Waiting on" + time expression is without doubt incorrect.

The average American would say the same thing as the average Englishman. I agree with apbl.

 

[ostap77]

The average American would say the same thing as the average Englishman. I agree with apbl.

What would it be than? A deliberate mistake?

 

[riquecohen]

What would it be than? A deliberate mistake?

I don´t think it´s a deliberate mistake. I have heard it and find it very jarring. It´s just poor use of the language.

 

[Allen165]

The average American would say the same thing as the average Englishman. I agree with apbl.

It seems you're wrong: The Grammarphobia Blog » Blog Archive » Waiting on.

 

[riquecohen]

It seems you're wrong: The Grammarphobia Blog » Blog Archive » Waiting on

That´s an interesting blog. I stand by what I and other posters have said. "Wait for" is far more commonly used by educated people.

 

[Allen165]

That´s an interesting blog. I stand by what I and other posters have said. "Wait for" is far more commonly used by educated people.

Yes, but that doesn't make "wait on someone" wrong.

 

[bhaisahab]

Yes, but that doesn't make "wait on someone" wrong.

It's not a good idea for students of English to learn that kind of language. If a student were to put "waiting on" instead of "waiting for" in a test it would be marked, rightly IMO, as incorrect.

 

[apbl]

I've listened to it again. A paltoon of American GIs is about to go through the enemy lines.

"Let's get moving.And stay close to me, huh. I don't want to be waiting on anyone." Time is 00:42:53

Here your example is different because you do not have the time expression after the verb to wait, in fact your example is now, "I don't wnat to be waiting on anyone." As I said before you can "wait on somebody" but the meaning is normally "to serve somenbody". Maybe in American English "to wait on somebody" is also used with the standard meaning of "to wait". I'm afraid with American English I can't help. In British English it would not be used.

 

[Allen165]

It's not a good idea for students of English to learn that kind of language. If a student were to put "waiting on" instead of "waiting for" in a test it would be marked, rightly IMO, as incorrect.

One can simply tell them that "wait on someone" is better suited for informal contexts.

 

[apbl]

I would certainly mark "wait on" in an exam as an incorrect use of the language unless it is being used in the sense of "to serve". I think it is generally good practice for students not to concern themselves too much about whether something is "technically" a mistake or not, but to grasp the use of what is the most widely accepted and widely used form. Otherwise language learning can become even more complicated and lose a lot of its enjoyment!

 

[ostap77]

I would certainly mark "wait on" in an exam as an incorrect use of the language unless it is being used in the sense of "to serve". I think it is generally good practice for students not to concern themselves too much about whether something is "technically" a mistake or not, but to grasp the use of what is the most widely accepted and widely used form. Otherwise language learning can become even more complicated and lose a lot of its enjoyment!

Of course I won't use it on the test. But I keep an open mind to things that people say informally in conversation.;-)