wartende

Wartende is a German noun formed from the verb warten (to wait) with the present-participle suffix -ende. In nominal use it designates people who are waiting. The term emphasizes a state of waiting rather than the act itself. Grammatically, the singular masculine is der Wartende, the singular feminine die Wartende, and the plural die Wartenden.

The word belongs to a family of nouns derived from participles, similar to Ankommende (arrivals), Reisende (travelers), or Abwesende (absent people). It is common in neutral, descriptive contexts such as reporting about people in queues, patients in a waiting room, or travelers in an airport. For example: Im Wartezimmer saßen die Wartenden unruhig; Die Wartenden wurden namentlich aufgerufen.

Wartende can also appear as a capitalized noun in contrast to its adjectival use. When used attributively as an adjective, it is written in lowercase: wartende Patienten, wartende Passagiere. In this adjectival role it describes something currently in the act of waiting, not a defined group of people.

Usage notes: the distinction between das Warten (the act of waiting) and die Wartenden (the people who wait) is common in German. The term is neutral and mainly functional, often found in descriptive text rather than casual speech, and it may appear in various contexts such as healthcare, travel, or event logistics.