phrase

• 1Used as a request to delay an action or decision for a short time.

  ‘wait a minute—I have to put my make-up on’

  More example sentences

  • ‘He stripped from his waist up, put on a black face, did about 20 minutes of the show and then said, wait a minute.’
  • ‘Wait a minute - I have to go back and make sure that's what I actually saw.’

  Synonyms

  be patient, wait a moment, wait a second, just a minute, just a moment, just a second, hold on

  View synonyms
• 2Used as a prelude to a query or objection.

  ‘wait a minute—that just isn't true’

  More example sentences

  • ‘Wait a minute, wait a minute, doesn't BET also air a show called Comic View where on any given day any comedian could have two or three Michael Jackson jokes?’
  • ‘The less money you make - wait a minute, wait a minute - the less money you make, the less taxes you pay.’
  • ‘And I thought about it for a minute and said, wait a minute, there's a lot to be thankful for.’
  • ‘Then you say, ‘wait a minute, wait a minute,’ and spend about 2 minutes playing devil's advocate.’
  • ‘Hey, wait a minute - how about the United Nations?’
  • ‘But wait a minute, I hear you say; those tax cuts expire in 2010.’
  • ‘I think when young people start to realize what Dumont is proposing, then they'll take a huge step back and go, ‘Whoa, wait a minute!’’
  • ‘You can see how there are some Americans who might look at this and say, wait a minute, it's branding the United States as the bad guy, when in fact the U.S. is trying to keep the bad people out.’
  • ‘I think people step back and say wait a minute - who is running this thing and who is making the decisions?’
  • ‘That was six months now and it's time to step back and say now wait a minute, what do these decisions mean?’