anticipation.

1. Expectation of an event, often carrying emotional involvement.

2. Action taken before an expected event to prepare for it.

Use it for

Words that belong together

• eager anticipation
• anxious anticipation

On the page

The letter filled her with anticipation rather than certainty.

Usage notes

Primary category: psychology / human behavior. Forms: Usually uncountable; no ordinary plural in this sense. Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings. Established modern English lexical item. No separate regional spelling or grammatical inflection entry. Writing functions: character, interpretation. Commonness: moderately common.