diff --git a/modules/elasticsearch/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/ActionFuture.java b/modules/elasticsearch/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/ActionFuture.java
index 7ce1581f638..93ac556579f 100644
--- a/modules/elasticsearch/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/ActionFuture.java
+++ b/modules/elasticsearch/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/ActionFuture.java
@@ -39,6 +39,13 @@ public interface ActionFuture<T> extends Future<T> {
      */
     T actionGet() throws ElasticSearchException;
 
+    /**
+     * Similar to {@link #get(long, java.util.concurrent.TimeUnit)}, just wrapping the {@link InterruptedException} with
+     * {@link org.elasticsearch.ElasticSearchInterruptedException}, and throwing the actual
+     * cause of the {@link java.util.concurrent.ExecutionException}.
+     */
+    T actionGet(String timeout) throws ElasticSearchException;
+
     /**
      * Similar to {@link #get(long, java.util.concurrent.TimeUnit)}, just wrapping the {@link InterruptedException} with
      * {@link org.elasticsearch.ElasticSearchInterruptedException}, and throwing the actual
diff --git a/modules/elasticsearch/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/support/PlainActionFuture.java b/modules/elasticsearch/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/support/PlainActionFuture.java
index 02291bfa275..4d502a39864 100644
--- a/modules/elasticsearch/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/support/PlainActionFuture.java
+++ b/modules/elasticsearch/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/support/PlainActionFuture.java
@@ -111,6 +111,10 @@ public class PlainActionFuture<T> implements ActionFuture<T>, ActionListener<T>
         }
     }
 
+    @Override public T actionGet(String timeout) throws ElasticSearchException {
+        return actionGet(TimeValue.parseTimeValue(timeout, null));
+    }
+
     @Override public T actionGet(long timeoutMillis) throws ElasticSearchException {
         return actionGet(timeoutMillis, TimeUnit.MILLISECONDS);
     }