waiting time / waiting period
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waiting time
The period of time you have to wait until something happens, someone arrives, or you receive a service.
Die durchschnittliche Wartezeit in der Notaufnahme beträgt mehrere Stunden.
The average waiting time in the emergency room is several hours.
The word is a simple compound made from the stem of the verb 'warten' (to wait) and the noun 'Zeit' (time). So it literally refers to the time that one waits.
Ich nutze die Wartezeit beim Arzt immer, um E-Mails zu beantworten.
I always use the waiting time at the doctor's office to answer emails.
In everyday life, people often speak of a 'lange' (long) or 'kurze' (short) Wartezeit (waiting time). You can 'eine Wartezeit in Kauf nehmen' (accept a waiting time) or try to 'verkürzen' (shorten) or 'überbrücken' (bridge/pass) it.
Um die lange Wartezeit zu überbrücken, las er ein Buch.
To pass the long waiting time, he read a book.
Typical sentence patterns are 'Die Wartezeit beträgt ...' (The waiting time is ...) or 'Man muss mit einer Wartezeit von ... rechnen' (You should expect a waiting time of ...). The preposition 'auf' (+ accusative) is also often used to say what you are waiting for.
Die Wartezeit auf einen Termin beim Facharzt kann mehrere Monate betragen.
The waiting time for an appointment with a specialist can be several months.
This meaning is specific to formal and legal contexts such as insurance policies, employment contracts, or memberships. Here, the 'Wartezeit' (waiting period) is a fixed period before certain rights or benefits become active.
Nach Vertragsabschluss gilt eine dreimonatige Wartezeit.
After the contract is signed, a three-month waiting period applies.
deadline / time limit
'die Frist' and 'die Wartezeit' both refer to a specific period of time before something happens or is allowed. A 'Frist' is the time you have to do something. By the end of the deadline, for example, an application, a payment, or a task must be completed. A 'Wartezeit' is the time during which you wait until it is your turn or until a claim becomes valid. The words can be confused because both can be officially defined. In everyday terms, the difference is simple: with 'Frist', you have to act. With 'Wartezeit', you have to wait.
Beim Arzt betrug die Wartezeit fast eine Stunde.
At the doctor's office, the waiting time was almost an hour.
Nach der Nachricht hast du nur eine kurze Frist für die Antwort.
After the message, you only have a short deadline for the reply.