Outwaited

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To have remained in place or continued to endure until someone or something else has departed or changed
2. To persist in a location or state until an expected departure or adjustment occurs from another party
3. To outlast another by staying longer or waiting for them to leave or conclude their action

Etymology: "Outwaited" is simply "outwait" in the past tense, formed by adding the prefix "out-" to the verb "wait." The prefix in this sense means "to surpass or beat someone at an action," so to outwait someone is to wait longer than they can bear to keep waiting. The same pattern appears in older English verbs such as "outrun," "outlive," and "outlast," where "out-" signals a contest of endurance or speed. "Wait" itself comes from Old French "waitier," meaning to watch or lie in ambush, which was borrowed from a Germanic source related to the English "wake." Its original sense was therefore watchfulness rather than passive delay, and the idea of staying alert for something is still present when someone outwaits a rival.

Synonyms: outlasted, survived, endured, withstood, bore

Antonyms: gave up, yielded, left, departed, quit