1
: rapidity of motion : swiftness
out of breath from haste—
Jane Austen
Jane AustenWe must make haste.
2
: rash or headlong action : precipitateness
She sent the letter in haste and later regretted it.
the beauty of speed uncontaminated by haste—Harper's
Harper's3
: undue eagerness to act
In their haste to leave for the airport, they forgot their passports.
hasted; hasting
archaic
: to urge on : hasten
with our fair entreaties haste them on—William Shakespeare
William Shakespearehaste thee, nymph, and bring with thee jest and youthful jollity—John Milton
John Milton
: to move or act swiftly
these minutes even now hasting into eternity—Winston Churchill
Winston ChurchillSynonyms
Examples of haste in a Sentence
Noun
The application had been approved with undue haste.
made haste to get there on time
Recent Examples on the Web
Orianna Rosa Royle, Fortune Europe, 18 Oct. 2024
Others worry that in its haste to stand up to one authoritarian regime, the US has wound up courting others.
—Issie Lapowsky, WIRED, 10 Oct. 2024
Brendan McAleer, Car and Driver, 17 Nov. 2022
But haste and carelessness in crafting the aid created a wellspring for fraud and waste - a mess that hundreds of federal investigators are still trying to clean up.
—Lisa Rein and Yeganeh Torbati, Anchorage Daily News, 25 Aug. 2022
See all Example Sentences for haste 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Noun
That reflects a view among DEI professionals and specialist recruitment firms that the pledges on racial inclusion in 2020 were made in haste.
—Orianna Rosa Royle, Fortune Europe, 18 Oct. 2024
Others worry that in its haste to stand up to one authoritarian regime, the US has wound up courting others.
—Issie Lapowsky, WIRED, 10 Oct. 2024
Verb
Should this pocket-size French import be legal to park in your driveway, make all haste to bid.
—Brendan McAleer, Car and Driver, 17 Nov. 2022
But haste and carelessness in crafting the aid created a wellspring for fraud and waste - a mess that hundreds of federal investigators are still trying to clean up.
—Lisa Rein and Yeganeh Torbati, Anchorage Daily News, 25 Aug. 2022
See all Example Sentences for haste
Dictionary Entries Near haste
Cite this Entry
“Haste.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/haste. Accessed 29 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share