waiting game
noun
wait·ing game
| \ ˈwā-tiŋ-
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Definition of waiting game
: a strategy in which one or more participants withhold action temporarily in the hope of having a favorable opportunity for more effective action later
Examples of waiting game in a Sentence
Until they make their decision, we're just playing a waiting game.
Recent Examples on the Web
And so the near-term waiting game begins to see exactly what will become of the Waukegan casino process once Pritzker fulfills his promise to give the final green light. — Dan Moran, Lake County News-Sun, "Moran: After bringing a gambling package home, Link says Waukegan casino could break ground next year," 4 June 2019 At a time when hyperbole can become pronounced, with agents manipulating where their clients will land, Hachimura could prove to be a need-to-trade-up waiting game for the Heat at No. — Ira Winderman, sun-sentinel.com, "Japan’s Rui Hachimura an intriguing Heat draft option, already with Kelly Olynyk’s endorsement," 3 June 2019 Oil deal Hedge funds and oil investors, who were playing a waiting game on crude prices in the run-up to the weekend’s meeting of OPEC and its allies in Vienna, seem to have been left confused by the outcome. — Lorcan Roche Kelly, Bloomberg.com, "Five Things You Need to Know to Start Your Day," 25 June 2018 Thus the waiting game will continue until just after 7 p.m. Thursday. — Dan Wiederer, chicagotribune.com, "Bears GM Ryan Pace skillfully hiding his cards as NFL draft draws near," 24 Apr. 2018 The fact that Democrats believe in government and have constituencies who depend on it, both as federal employees and beneficiaries, makes the dynamics of the shutdown waiting game inherently different and more difficult for Democrats. — James Hohmann, Washington Post, "The Daily 202: Public opinion is protecting Mueller’s investigation — for now," 24 Jan. 2018 For some, the slow-grow that comes after a transformative chop is a waiting game full of awkward lengths. — Calin Van Paris, Vogue, "Kristen Stewart is the Year's Ultimate Hair Chameleon, From a Blanched Buzz to a Punky Mullet," 2 Nov. 2017 Oklahoma State’s offensive line took a major hit with the loss of Larry Williams for the season and a day-to-day waiting game for Zach Crabtree to recover from a turf toe injury. — Joe Buettner, ajc, "Offensive line injuries force Mike Gundy to rely on youth," 27 Sep. 2017These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'waiting game.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for waiting game
waiting game
noun
English Language Learners Definition of waiting game
: a situation in which you wait to see what happens before you decide what to do
See the full definition for waiting game in the English Language Learners Dictionary