待つ（まつ）
JLPT N5 · Godan verb (Group 1)
Pitch accent: atamadaka (head-high) — first mora high, then falls
Meaning: to wait
Conjugation
| Form | Japanese | Reading |
|---|---|---|
| masu-form (polite) | 待ちます | まちます |
| te-form | 待って | まって |
| ta-form (past) | 待った | まった |
| nai-form (negative) | 待たない | またない |
| potential form | 待てる | まてる |
See the full conjugation table for "待つ" →
Example sentences
- 駅で三十分も彼を待った。 — I waited for him at the station for as long as thirty minutes.
- すぐに戻るので、少し待ってください。 — I'll be right back, so please wait a moment.
Idioms & proverbs containing “待つ”
- 待つ身は長い (まつみはながい) — a watched pot never boils
- 人事を尽くして天命を待つ (じんじをつくしててんめいをまつ) — man proposes, God disposes; do your best and leave the rest to providence; man does what man can do then awaits the verdict of heaven (or fate)
- 首を洗って待つ (くびをあらってまつ) — to wait for one's punishment; to wait before one gets what's coming to one; to wash one's neck and wait (i.e. for one's beheading)
Related words
See it used in real works
- Example sentences from Japanese novels & web fiction (Massif)
- Hear “待つ” pronounced in real videos (YouGlish)