待つ (まつ, matsu) Japanese meaning: wait | Kotomora

待まつ

ま

つ

待つ · godan verb (-tsu)

Form	Positive	Negative
Dictionary	待まつ	待またない
Polite	待まちます	待まちません
Past polite	待まちました	待まちませんでした
Past	待まった	待またなかった
Te-form	待まって	待またないで
Desire	待まちたい	待まちたくない
Potential	待まてる	待まてない
Passive	待またれる	待またれない
Causative	待またせる	待またせない
Causative passive	待またせられるalso 待またされる	待またせられないalso 待またされない
Volitional	待まとう
Polite volitional	待まちましょう
Imperative	待まて	待まつな
Conditional	待まてば	待またなければ
Tara conditional	待まったら	待またなかったら

Meanings

godan verb (-tsu), transitive verb, intransitive verb

wait; wait for

The basic everyday use: spend time until someone arrives, something happens, or one is allowed to act. Can be intransitive, as in ここで待つ, or transitive, as in バスを待つ.

ここで五ご分ふん待まってください。

Kanji

待wait, depend on
俟wait, depend on

Transitive / intransitive

待つ itself is used both transitively and intransitively: transitively with a direct object as in バスを待つ (to wait for a bus), and intransitively without one as in ここで待つ (to wait here).

Related words· 7

待まち望のぞむN1sense 2
待つ is the neutral, everyday word for waiting, while 待ち望む adds a stronger emotional sense of longing or eagerly hoping for something.
期き待たいN3sense 2
待つ often involves physically spending time until something happens, whereas 期待する is about hoping or expecting without necessarily waiting.
待たい機きN1sense 1
待つ is the plain, general verb for waiting, while 待機する is a more formal or operational term for standing by ready for action.
待まち兼かねるN1
待つ is the neutral verb for 'to wait', while 待ち兼ねる adds a nuance of impatience or eager anticipation.

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待まち受うけるN1
待つ is the plain, general verb for 'to wait', while 待ち受ける adds a sense of readiness or anticipation and sounds more literary.
待まち構かまえるN1
待つ is the plain, general verb for waiting, while 待ち構える adds a sense of readiness and eager anticipation, often for something expected to happen.
待まち合あわせるN3
待つ simply means 'to wait,' whereas 待ち合わせる implies two people have agreed in advance to meet somewhere.

Don't confuse with

持もつN5
待つ (まつ, to wait) and 持つ (もつ, to hold/have) look similar in kanji but are completely different verbs with different readings and meanings.

Word family· 59

待まち
waiting; wait · wait tile; tile needed to win
待まち合あわせN3
appointment; meeting; rendezvous
待まち遠どおしいN1
longed-for; anxiously awaited; can't wait for
待

Written forms

待まつUsage91%
Standard kanji spelling for the everyday verb meaning to wait or wait for something.
まつUsage8%
俟まつUsage<1%
rarely-used kanji form
Rare, literary kanji spelling. It is especially seen in formal set expressions such as 論を俟たない and 〜に俟つところが大きい, rather than in ordinary everyday writing.

Etymology

A native Japanese verb conventionally written with 待. The rare spelling 俟 is a literary kanji form associated with waiting for or depending on something, but no historical derivation is specified.

待まつ

Meanings

Usage patterns

Expressions· 15