These are amongst the most dreaded words to hear from the pilot. It almost always seems to happen to me late night hours at EWR - usually after a long or delayed flight. What really peeves me or actually enrgages me is that as the pilot says this I'm usually staring at multiple empty gates.

The way I figure is that what they mean is that "the convenient or assigned gate is not available". Too much trouble to move the plane again after the PAX get off.

I hate this, I hate this, I hate this !!!