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miss a beat



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Idioms and Phrases

Hesitate momentarily, out of embarrassment or confusion. This expression is most often used in a negative context, as in He sidestepped the reporter's probe into his personal life without missing a beat , or Not missing a beat, she outlined all the reasons for her decision . This expression alludes to the regular beat of musical time. [Mid-1900s]

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

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