as in anticipation
the act or state of looking forward to some occurrence
in expectation of a harsh winter, we budgeted more money than usual for the cost of heating our home
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Recent Examples of expectation
Dutch female speedskater Jutta Leerdam lived up to the high expectations that were set for her on Monday and captured the gold medal in 1,000-meter speedskating at the Winter Olympics.
—
Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 9 Feb. 2026
Over the next few weeks, Luria believes that OpenAI will exceed investors’ expectations with regards to its model performance and capital raising, which should help drive significant positive stock performances for the main companies in its orbit.
—Lisa Kailai Han, CNBC, 9 Feb. 2026
Claude’s shticky performance as Alex might indeed have represented mere conformity to genre expectations.
—Gideon Lewis-Kraus, New Yorker, 9 Feb. 2026
Either report could sway expectations for what the Federal Reserve will do with interest rates.
—Stan Choe, Los Angeles Times, 9 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for expectation
Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 9 Feb. 2026
Over the next few weeks, Luria believes that OpenAI will exceed investors’ expectations with regards to its model performance and capital raising, which should help drive significant positive stock performances for the main companies in its orbit.
—Lisa Kailai Han, CNBC, 9 Feb. 2026
Claude’s shticky performance as Alex might indeed have represented mere conformity to genre expectations.
—Gideon Lewis-Kraus, New Yorker, 9 Feb. 2026
Either report could sway expectations for what the Federal Reserve will do with interest rates.
—Stan Choe, Los Angeles Times, 9 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for expectation
Recent Examples of Synonyms for expectation
Noun
-
The air was thick with anticipation and old snow.—
Rachel Handler,
Vulture,
13 Feb. 2026
-
Let anticipation do the heavy lifting.—
Alysia Reiner,
Flow Space,
13 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
But in a clinical trial, that experience can be a liability as outcomes can be sensitive to expectancy bias.—
Ian Reardon,
STAT,
2 Feb. 2026
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Someone genetically predetermined to live 80 years could reach 85 with healthy habits, while unhealthy lifestyle choices can shorten that expectancy to 75.—
Michal Ruprecht,
CNN Money,
29 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Expectation.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/expectation. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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