waiting up
Not sleeping yet
Waiting up is staying awake past one's usual bedtime to await someone's arrival or news: I'll be waiting up for you.
Parents wait up for teenagers coming home late.
The phrase implies concern or anticipation—you wouldn't wait up for a stranger.
Don't wait up tells someone not to delay sleep on your account.
Staying until something arrives
- expectationBelief about future outcomes
- hopeDesire for good outcomes
- eagernessIntense willingness to act
- excitementState of eager enthusiasm
countdown · readiness · vigil · longing · expecting · homecoming · return · arrival
Careful, sustained attention
- alertnessActive mental awareness
- attentivenessConcentrated awareness of surroundings
- listeningAttending to sound
- watchingActively looking at something
guarding · protective · sentry · lookout · monitoring · keeping watch · ears open · light on
Anxious rumination or surface wear
- nervousnessState of anxious unease
- apprehensionNervous anticipation of trouble
- anxietyPersistent apprehensive distress
- concernTroubled interest in something
unease · restlessness · dread · fear · uncertainty · agitation · distress · overthinking
Inability to rest
- tirednessState of needing rest
- yawningOpening mouth when tired
- fatigueWeariness from prolonged exertion
- exhaustionState of utter depletion
drowsiness · bleary-eyed · weary · sleepy · awake · alert · coffee · caffeine
Twelve o'clock at night
- late nightTime near midnight
- darknessTotal absence of light
- quietLacking in sound
- silenceTotal lack of sound
stillness · moonlight · nightfall · small hours · lamplight · porch light · shadows · hush
awaiting
Staying until something arrives
- expectationBelief about future outcomes
- hopeDesire for good outcomes
- eagernessIntense willingness to act
excitement · countdown · readiness · vigil · longing · expecting · homecoming · return · arrival · reunion
watchfulness
Careful, sustained attention
- alertnessActive mental awareness
- attentivenessConcentrated awareness of surroundings
- listeningAttending to sound
watching · guarding · protective · sentry · lookout · monitoring · keeping watch · ears open · light on · window
fretting
Anxious rumination or surface wear
- nervousnessState of anxious unease
- apprehensionNervous anticipation of trouble
- anxietyPersistent apprehensive distress
concern · unease · restlessness · dread · fear · uncertainty · agitation · distress · overthinking · pacing
sleeplessness
Inability to rest
- tirednessState of needing rest
- yawningOpening mouth when tired
- fatigueWeariness from prolonged exertion
exhaustion · drowsiness · bleary-eyed · weary · sleepy · awake · alert · coffee · caffeine · heavy eyelids
midnight
Twelve o'clock at night
- late nightTime near midnight
- darknessTotal absence of light
- quietLacking in sound
silence · stillness · moonlight · nightfall · small hours · lamplight · porch light · shadows · hush · empty streets
waiting upgoing to bed
Preparing for sleep
turning in · going to sleep · hitting the sack · hitting the hay · early to bed
wait, waiting, waits, waited, waiter, waiters, waitress, waitresses