How to Politely Ask Someone to Wait in English

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In our everyday life, on many occasions, we need to ask other people to wait. But, as people don’t feel good waiting, make sure you request them politely in appropriate English to wait for you. In this post, I’ve come up with some exciting and smart English expressions to ask someone to wait.

“Would you please hold on for a moment?” and “Could you please wait for a while?” are used to ask someone to wait in English in formal situations. However, you can say “Wait a second” or “Hold your horses” to informally ask them to wait.

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Remember! When you ask someone to wait, you actually ask for a favor from them. So, make sure that you are polite enough in your choice of words and voice tone. No worries! In this post, you’ll get 100+ example sentences that you can use to ask someone to wait in English politely.

Wait/Whoa/Stop…

You can simply use the words “Wait,” “Whoa,” or “Stop” to ask someone to wait for you. These are informal words for asking someone to wait in English. To sound polite, you may use the word “Please” while using these three words to ask someone to wait in English.

Example sentences:

Wait!
Wait! I am coming.
Hey! Wait, please.
Wait! Wait! Wait! I am almost done.
Whoa! Take me with you, please.
Stop, please.

Note: The word “Whoa” also means stop. We use the word “stop” to ask someone to wait indirectly.

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Hold/Hang on a Second/Minute/Moment/for a While…

The phrasal verbs “Hold on” and “Hang on” are the most common ways to ask someone to wait in English. We can use them both in direct and telephonic conversations. These are used for informal uses in most cases.

However, using the word “Please” may make it a bit politer and can be used in semi-formal situations.

Example sentences:

Hold on a second. I’m almost at the end.
Hang on a second, please. I’m checking.
Hold on a minute, please. I’m coming.
Hang on a minute. Try it in another way.
Hold on a moment. I’ll get back to you.
Hang on a moment, please. I’m sending you the photo.
Hold on for a while. I’ll make it okay.
Hang on for a while, please. Let me check it.

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There can be other versions of those expressions that you should completely use in informal situations. For example, you can use the following expressions when you ask your close ones, especially your friends, to wait.

Hold your horses. [Very informal]
Hold on a sec. [“Sec.” is the short form of the word “Second.”]
Hang on a sec.
Hold on a mo. [“Mo.” is the short form of the word “Moment.”]
Hang on a mo.

Give Me a Second/Minute/Moment/While…

The request of giving you time is also quite common to ask someone to wait for you in English. Let’s see some example sentences using the word “Give.” You can use the expressions in both informal and semi-formal contexts.

Give me a second, please. I’ll be right back to you.
Give me a minute. Things will be fine. No worries.
Give me a moment. I’ll call you back.
Give me a while, please. I’ll arrange it all.

There can be other completely informal versions of the above expressions too. You should use them only with your friends and close ones.

Give me a sec.
Give me a mo.

Wait for a Second/Minute/Moment/ a While…

You can directly ask someone to wait by using the word “Wait” at the beginning of the following sentences. We usually use these expressions in semi-formal and informal situations.

Example sentences:

Wait for a second, please. I can help you with that.
Wait for a minute. I’m almost at the end of this chapter.
Wait for a moment, please. I’ll be there soon.
Wait for a while. You may have the chance to meet him.

Note: You can also place the word “Please” at the beginning of the sentences, as we see in the sentence “Please, wait a second.”

You can also use the following variants of some of the above expressions in informal situations only.

Wait a sec.
Wait for a mo.
Wait till I am not there.
Wait until I come back.

Just a Second/Minute/Moment/While…

Expressions with the word “Just” at the beginning are very common to ask someone to wait. However, suppose you are doing something, and someone calls you for something else. In that case, you can use the following expressions in both semi-formal and informal situations.

Examples sentences:

Just a second, please. It’s almost complete.
Just a minute. She’ll be here now.
Just a moment, please. I am stuck here.
Just a while, please.

Some similar expressions are also available in the English language that you can use to ask people to wait in informal situations.

Just a sec
Just a mo.

Could/Would You Please Wait a Second/Minute/Moment/While…

Using modal verbs such as “Would” and “Could” is used to ask someone to wait in formal situations. However, if you need to ask someone to wait in a professional context, you should use the following expressions.

Would you please wait a second?
Could you please wait a second for the others?
Would you please wait a minute? They will be here, I’m sure.
Could you please wait a minute for me?
Would you please wait a moment?
Could you please wait a moment? Everything will be ready. Don’t worry, please.
Would you please wait a while? I’m very close to the end.
Could you please wait a while?

Could/Would You Hold/Hang on a Second/Minute/Moment/While…

Using the phrasal verbs “hold on” or “hang on” with the modal verbs at the beginning of a sentence to ask someone to wait for sounds politer. You can use such expressions in formal situations. Here are some examples.

Would you	hold on	a second, please? a minute, please? moment, please? a while, please?
Could you	hold on	a second, please? a minute, please? a moment, please? a while, please?
Would you	hang on	a second, please? a minute, please? a moment, please? a while, please?
Could you	hang on	a second, please? a minute, please? a moment, please? a while, please?

Could/Would You Please Give Me a Second/Minute/Moment/While…

Below are some polite expressions using modal verbs to request someone to wait. You can use them in formal situations.

Would you please	give me	a second? a minute? a moment? a while?
Could you please	give me	a second? a minute? a moment? a while?

Can/Will You Please Wait a Second/Minute/Moment/While…

The modal verbs “Can” and “Will” are less polite than “Could” and “Would.” So, the best is to use the following expressions in semi-formal expressions. However, you may use them in formal situations too.

Will you please	wait	a second? a minute? a moment? a while?
Can you please	wait	a second? a minute? a moment? a while?

Can/Will You Hold/Hang on a Second/Minute/Moment/While…

The phrasal verbs “hold on” or “hang on” with the modal verbs “Can” and “Will” make an excellent combination to ask someone to wait for you in English. I recommend you exclusively use them in semi-formal situations. However, you may also use them in formal situations.

Will you	hold on	a second? a minute? a moment? a while?
Can you	hold on	a second? a minute? a moment? a while?
Will you	hang on	a second? a minute? a moment? a while?
Can you	hang on	a second? a minute? a moment? a while?

Can/Will You Please Give Me a Second/Minute/Moment/While…

The expressions below are pretty standard for semi-formal situations.

Will you please	give me	a second? a minute? a moment? a while?
Can you please	give me	a second? a minute? a moment? a while?

Would/Do You Mind Holding/Hanging on for a Second/Minute/Moment/While…

The following expressions are used in formal situations. No matter how serious the setting is, you can surely use them there. However, the word “Would” at the beginning of any sentence is politer and more formal than the word “Do.” So, I recommend using the modal verb “Would” rather than the auxiliary “Do.”

Would you mind	holding on	for a second? for a minute? for a moment? for a while?
Do you mind	holding on	for a second? for a minute? for a moment? for a while?
Would you mind	hanging on	for a second? for a minute? for a moment? for a while?
Do you mind	hanging on	for a second? for a minute? for a moment? for a while?

Would/Do You Mind Waiting for a Second/Minute/Moment/While…

Here are some common expressions you can use to ask someone to wait in formal situations.

Would you mind	waiting	for a second? for a minute? for a moment? for a while?
Do you mind	waiting	a second? a minute? a moment? a while?

Some Other Expressions to Use to Ask Someone to Wait

I’ve already mentioned some examples in the above part of the post. Here are some other sentences that native English speakers also use to ask someone to wait.

All in good time.
Bear with me, please.
I won’t be long.
I’ll arrive soon.
I’ll be right there.
I’ll be there soon.
Let me see.
Let me think.
Not so fast.
Something will have to wait.

What to Say When Someone Has Already Waited for You

I already talked about how you should ask someone to wait in English. It would be best to consider what you say once someone has already waited for you. You should thank them for doing a favor by waiting for you and apologize for keeping them waiting.

Here are some sentences you can use to appreciate someone who has waited for you.

Thanks for waiting.
I appreciate that you waited.
I am sorry for keeping you waiting.
I apologize for the delay.
Thank you so much for understanding my situation. I am really sorry for being late.
I would not have kept you waiting if I could come earlier. Thanks for waiting.
Thank you so much for waiting.
Sorry to keep you waiting.

In Conclusion

So, if you need to ask someone to wait, you can express that by using the above expression. Remember that politeness is the key to any good conversation, exceptionally when requesting or asking for permission from someone.

So, the expressions above can help you better express when you need to request someone to wait for you.

Thanks for reading!

Happy learning.