<blockquote>
<p>等待 simply means &quot;to wait&quot;</p>
<p>Example: <strong>等待</strong>黎明 (<strong>Wait</strong> for dawn)</p>
<p><em>you wait for something to happn</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p>等到 means &quot;wait until&quot; or &quot;waited till&quot; depend on the context.</p>
<blockquote>
<ol>
<li><strong>等到</strong>: &quot;<strong>wait until</strong>&quot;</li>
</ol>
<p>Example: &quot;<strong>等到</strong>太阳落山&quot; (<strong>Wait until</strong> the sun goes down)</p>
<p><em>You keep waiting until something happen</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p>~</p>
<blockquote>
<ol start="2">
<li><strong>等到</strong> &quot;<strong>waited till</strong>&quot;</li>
</ol>
<p>Example: 等了三天，终于<strong>等到</strong>你回来了 (waited for three days, finally <strong>waited till</strong> you came back)</p>
<p><em>You have successfully waited till something to happen</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p>user17686 wrote:</p>
<blockquote>
<p><em>Are there instances that 等待 &amp; 等到 can be used interchangeably?</em></p>
</blockquote>
<p>No, 等待 and 等到 have different meanings.</p>
<ul>
<li><p><strong>等待</strong>黎明 (<strong>wait for</strong> dawn)</p>
</li>
<li><p><strong>等到</strong>黎明 (<strong>wait until</strong> dawn)/ <strong>等</strong>到黎明(<strong>waited</strong> till dawn)</p>
</li>
</ul>
<p>However, 等, 等待 and 等候 can be used interchangeably sometimes.</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>等</strong>黎明, <strong>等候</strong>黎明 and <strong>等待</strong>黎明 all mean '<strong>wait</strong> for dawn'</li>
</ul>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-08-11T04:28:36.967Z
Can you also put 等待 in a sentence too?  Are there instances that 等待 & 等到 can be used interchangeably?  Thanks :)
user17686
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-08-11T03:22:52.363Z
2017-08-11T16:32:05.697Z
2020-06-17T09:50:11.587Z
Tang Ho
<p>"等待"
Waiting for someone or Waiting for something happened.
You still waiting~</p>

<p>"等到"
I finally wait for that person!
I finally wait until that happened!
You don't need to wait and You can take the next step!</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-08-11T02:43:49.937Z
2017-08-11T02:43:49.937Z
Jacky Lu
<p>等候 means that you are greeting somebody or something, 等待 means you can do nothing except waiting，等到  means wait for person</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-08-11T02:59:24.373Z
2017-08-11T02:59:24.373Z
Julia Collier
<p>I'm struggling to differentiate between the two. Can someone explain this? Perhaps include some example sentences too. </p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-08-11T23:23:54.843Z
answer in dictionaries, e.g. bkrs: 等待 wait for; await等待继承遗产 wait for dead men's shoes; wait for a dead man's shoes
等待时机 await a favourable opportunity; wait for a chance; bide one's time
他在等待机会。 He is waiting for his opportunity.
等到：to wait until
by the time when (sth is ready etc) （表示时间条件） by the time; when:
等到他来，我便告诉他。 I'll tell him when he comes.
（等候到） wait until; wait till:
等到头发白 wait until one's hair turns white
我们要等到他来。 We shall wait until (till) he comes.
also find 100 samples for each in jukuu, and more in Line dictionary
user6065
<simplified-characters>
Difference between 等待 and 等到
# Difference between 等待 and 等到

(Asked by: username_0 on 2017-08-11)

I'm struggling to differentiate between the two. Can someone explain this? Perhaps include some example sentences too.

**Tags:** simplified-characters
> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: answer in dictionaries, e.g. bkrs: 等待 wait for; await等待继承遗产 wait for dead men's shoes; wait for a dead man's shoes 等待时机 await a favourable opportunity; wait for a chance; bide one's time 他在等待机会。 He is waiting for his opportunity. 等到：to wait until by the time when (sth is ready etc) （表示时间条件） by the time; when: 等到他来，我便告诉他。 I'll tell him when he comes. （等候到） wait until; wait till: 等到头发白 wait until one's hair turns white 我们要等到他来。 We shall wait until (till) he comes. also find 100 samples for each in jukuu, and more in Line dictionary  

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## 3 answers

### Answer by username_2 on 2017-08-11. Score: 2 | Accepted answer

> 等待 simply means "to wait"
>
> Example: **等待**黎明 (**Wait** for dawn)
>
> *you wait for something to happn*

等到 means "wait until" or "waited till" depend on the context.

> 1. **等到**: "**wait until**"
>
> Example: "**等到**太阳落山" (**Wait until** the sun goes down)
>
> *You keep waiting until something happen*

~

> 2. **等到** "**waited till**"
>
> Example: 等了三天，终于**等到**你回来了 (waited for three days, finally **waited till** you came back)
>
> *You have successfully waited till something to happen*

user17686 wrote:

> *Are there instances that 等待 & 等到 can be used interchangeably?*

No, 等待 and 等到 have different meanings.

* **等待**黎明 (**wait for** dawn)
* **等到**黎明 (**wait until** dawn)/ **等**到黎明(**waited** till dawn)

However, 等, 等待 and 等候 can be used interchangeably sometimes.

* **等**黎明, **等候**黎明 and **等待**黎明 all mean '**wait** for dawn'

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: Can you also put 等待 in a sentence too?  Are there instances that 等待 & 等到 can be used interchangeably?  Thanks :)  

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### Answer by username_3 on 2017-08-11. Score: 0

"等待"
Waiting for someone or Waiting for something happened.
You still waiting~

"等到"
I finally wait for that person!
I finally wait until that happened!
You don't need to wait and You can take the next step!


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### Answer by username_4 on 2017-08-11. Score: -1

等候 means that you are greeting somebody or something, 等待 means you can do nothing except waiting，等到 means wait for person


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