awaits

1. 1
   verb

   Third-person singular simple present of await.

   A long journey awaits the travelers once the bridge reopens.

   The board awaits final figures before approving the budget.

   Note

   The form a singular subject takes, and it usually takes a direct object as well. The board awaits the figures, never awaits for them, because the for is already built into the verb. In the sense of simply waiting for something, it sits a step more formal than waits for. Often the subject is what lies ahead rather than the person waiting, as in a long journey awaits the travelers: what is in store comes first.

2. 2
   nounobsolete

   Plural of await.

   Note

   A plural from a noun English has let go. Await once meant an ambush or a watchful lying-in-wait, and both uses are now obsolete. Several awaits are several such watches or hidden posts. Because the spelling matches the everyday verb form, a modern reader will take it as a verb unless the context is plainly one of lookouts and ambush. In present-day writing, watches or ambushes says it safely.

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