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pause definition

pause (pôz)

noun

  1. a short period of inaction; temporary stop, break, or rest, as in speaking or reading
  2. hesitation; interruption; delay pursuit without pause
    1. a stop or break in speaking or reading, which clarifies meaning
    2. any mark of punctuation indicating this
  4. Music
    1. the holding of a tone or rest beyond its written value, at the discretion of the performer
    2. a sign  indicating this, written above the note or rest
  5. Prosody a rhythm break or caesura

Etymology: ME pawse < MFr pause < L pausa < Gr pausis, a stopping < pauein, to bring to an end < IE base *paus-, to let go > OPrus pausto, wild

intransitive verb paused, pausing paus′·ing

  1. to make a pause; be temporarily inactive; stop; hesitate
  2. to dwell or linger: with on or upon

Etymology: Fr pauser < L pausare, to stop < the n.

Related Forms:

pause Idioms

give someone pause

to make someone hesitant or uncertain

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Alternate definitions:

idioms pause idiom

medical pause definition - medical

pause Synonyms

pause

n.

  1. A break

    intermission, suspension, discontinuance, breathing space, breather*, hitch*, hesitancy*, interlude*, hiatus*, abeyance*, interim*, lapse*, cessation*, stopover*, interval*, rest period, gap*, stoppage; see also recess 1.

    Antonyms continuation*, prolongation, progression. *

  2. Temporary inaction

    lull, rest, stop, halt, truce, suspension of active hostilities, stay, respite, interregnum, standstill, stand, deadlock, stillness.

    Antonyms persistence*, steadiness, ceaselessness.

give one pause

make one stop and think, cause doubt, create suspicion, create uncertainty; see confuse.


pause

v.

delay, halt, rest, catch one's breath, cease, hold back, reflect, deliberate, suspend, think twice, discontinue, interrupt, rest one's oars*; see also hesitate.


Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

pause Usage Examples

Object

  • rewind: The 2.5 inch color display screens are increasingly touch-sensitive, giving you fingertip access to play, pause, rewind and fast forward controls.

Adjective modifier

  • momentary: Twinkling; the momentary pause is awkwardly shrugged off.

Modifies a noun

  • button: Casal perched on a stool stops, starts, the song like you might push in the pause button on the CD player.

Infinitive complement

  • admire: Wherever you decide to hang your Old Map people will always pause to admire its beauty.

Preposition: in

  • bombing: We debated how to do it better; should there be a pause in the bombing to deliver food aid and so on.

Preposition: for

  • breath: We need to change the pace, slow down, pause for breath.
pause usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

pause quotes

It is the same each time with progress. First they ignore you, then they say you are mad, then dangerous, then there's a pause, and then you can't find anyone who disagrees.

-Benn,Tony (Anthony Neil Wedgwood)

It is not enough to be pause, to be hole to be void, to be silent to be semicolon, to be semicolony; 150

-Brathwaite

When evening quickens in the street, comes a pause in the day's occupation that is known as the cocktail hour.

-DeVoto, Bernard

pause quotes (more)

Webster's New World Dictionary of Quotations Copyright © 2005 by Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. Published by Wiley, Hoboken, NJ. Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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MLA Style

"pause." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 4 July 2009
  • <www.yourdictionary.com/pause>

APA Style

pause. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 4th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/pause

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