pending

1 of 2

preposition

pend·​ing ˈpen-diŋ 

1

: during

… their opportunity to develop trade pending the laborious and fruitless negotiations.

—Theodore Hsi-En Chen

2

: while awaiting

pending approval

were held in custody pending trial

pending

2 of 2

adjective

1

: not yet decided : being in continuance

the case is still pending

2

: imminent, impending

Synonyms of pending

Preposition

• during

Adjective

• unsettled
• unresolved
• undetermined
• open
• debatable
• undecided

Examples of pending in a Sentence

Preposition

He is being held in jail pending trial.

She received a four-year sentence and is currently out on bail pending appeal.

Adjective

The results of the investigation are pending.

There are lawsuits pending against the company.

Recent Examples on the Web

Preposition

Judges have blocked Alabama's and Arkansas' measures from taking effect pending litigation. —Jo Yurcaba, NBC News, 16 Nov. 2022

Since Sorokin is currently in Immigration and Enforcement custody pending deportation, the video interview happened in fits and starts because Cooper and Sorokin had to keep reconnecting on the phone when time was up. —Lisa Respers France, CNN, 17 Mar. 2022

Adjective

But while lawmakers and watchdog groups weighed legal objections and the general public debated the pros and cons of the pending ballroom, social-media users turned demolition into content. —Melissa Fleur Afshar, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Oct. 2025

Aurora's other pending project include plans to convert a historic former Milwaukee school, 2708 W. Wisconsin Ave., into a $50 million community health and wellness hub. —Tom Daykin, jsonline.com, 30 Sep. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Preposition

probably as partial translation of French pendant "during," present participle of pendre "to hang" — more at pendent

Note: In French, pendant, the present participle of pendre "to hang," developed into a preposition through its use in legal language in Old and Middle French (as well as in Anglo-French). In expressions such as le plait pendant "the lawsuit [being] not yet settled" (literally "the suit hanging"), le debat pendant "deliberation not having concluded," if the word pendant was preposed (pendant le plait, pendant le debat), it could be construed as a preposition and extended to non-legal uses. The le plait pendant construction is a calque of post-classical Latin ablative absolute constructions such as judicio pendente "the judgment not yet made" (literally, "hanging"), lite pendente "the lawsuit not yet settled." Pending might be taken as a partial anglicization of pendent in the sense "remaining undetermined," rather than an adaptation of French pendant, but pendent in this meaning is first attested about the same time as pending, in the early seventeenth century. The late date is striking given the frequency of these constructions in both Anglo-French and British Medieval Latin.

Adjective

Note: See etymology and note at pending entry 1.

First Known Use

Preposition

1642, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1643, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for pending

• bending
• blending
• ending
• fending
• lending
• mending
• rending
• sending
• spending
• tending
• trending
• vending

Kids Definition

pending

1 of 2 preposition

pend·​ing ˈpen-diŋ 

: while waiting for

held in jail pending a trial

pending

2 of 2 adjective

1

: not yet decided or acted on

bills pending in Congress

2

: being about to take place

signs of a pending victory

Legal Definition

pending

1 of 2 preposition

pend·​ing ˈpen-diŋ 

1

: during the time of

2

: while awaiting : in the time preceding

held in escrow pending the outcome of the suit

free pending trial

pending

2 of 2 adjective

1

: not yet decided

a pending suit

2

: to occur or be realized soon