pause
Americannoun
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pauses
plural
-
a temporary stop or rest, especially in speech or action.
a short pause after each stroke of the oar.
- Synonyms:
- lacuna, hiatus, halt, break, interruption, suspension
-
a cessation of activity because of doubt or uncertainty; a momentary hesitation.
- Synonyms:
- lacuna, hiatus, halt, break, interruption, suspension
-
any comparatively brief stop, delay, wait, etc..
I would like to make a pause in my talk and continue after lunch.
- Synonyms:
- lacuna, hiatus, halt, break, interruption, suspension
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a break or rest in speaking or reading to emphasize meaning, grammatical relation, metrical division, etc., or in writing or printing by the use of punctuation.
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Prosody. a break or suspension, as a caesura, in a line of verse.
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Music. a fermata.
verb (used without object)
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pauses,
present (3rd person singular)
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paused,
past participle, past
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pausing
present participle
idioms
verb
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to cease an action temporarily; stop
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to hesitate; delay
she replied without pausing
noun
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a temporary stop or rest, esp in speech or action; short break
-
prosody another word for caesura
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Also called: fermata. music a continuation of a note or rest beyond its normal length
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to cause to hesitate
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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nonpausenoun
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pausernoun
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pausingnoun
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pausaladjective
-
pausefuladjective
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pauselessadjective
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unpausingadjective
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pausefullyadverb
-
pauselesslyadverb
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pausinglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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pausesimple
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pausessimple
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have pausedperfect
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has pausedperfect
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am pausingprogressive
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are pausingprogressive
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is pausingprogressive
-
have been pausingperfect progressive
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has been pausingperfect progressive
Past
-
pausedsimple
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had pausedperfect
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was pausingprogressive
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were pausingprogressive
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had been pausingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of pause
First recorded in 1400–50; (for the noun) Middle English, from Latin pausa, from Greek paûsis “a halt,” from paú(ein) “to stop” + -sis -sis; verb derivative of the noun
Explanation
The noun pause means "a short break," like the pauses in television shows that allow for commercials to be shown. Pause can also be a verb that means "to stop for a short time." Teachers, for example, often pause after making an important point to check that students understand and to give them time to ask questions. Pause which rhymes with laws and cause, comes from the Greek word pausis, "stopping, ceasing," which comes from pauein "to stop, to cause to cease." Why don't you pause and think about that for a moment.
Vocabulary lists containing pause
The Best Starting Words for Wordle
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"Thank You, M'am"
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"Because I Could Not Stop for Death" by Emily Dickinson
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
That should be enough to allow the Fed to pause at their late-October meeting, economists say, and raise expectations for an interest-rate hike in mid-December.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 12, 2026
But one imagines that, somewhere between the second and third hundred, a person would pause to ask, “You sure you want 260 nuggets, hon?”
From Salon ● Oct. 11, 2026
After a 10-minute pause, founding Journey guitarist Neal Schon told the Bank of Oklahoma Center audience that Castronovo had been taken to the hospital.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 9, 2026
Jetten said a six-month pause before sanctions took effect should be used to pursue dialogue with Washington -- "this will give us plenty of time."
From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026
In the pause that followed, Duane realized that he didn’t see at all.
From "The Very, Very Far North" by Dan Bar-el
But 15 minutes into the trip, he heard the telltale sounds of a work call coming from seat 4A: agenda updates, awkward pauses and everyone’s favorite: “Can you see my screen?”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026
Nobody pauses to determine whether everyone wants enough chips to justify them.
From Salon ● Oct. 7, 2026
An appeal filed in that time pauses collection while Social Security reviews her case.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 22, 2026
The chorus is the key here, as its smooth riff pauses for Casablancas to softy wail out “We could never afford it / So we dine and dash / I would always go last.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 21, 2026
Zarra pauses dramatically, “...the 2016 Olympic team had five...”
From "Black Brother, Black Brother" by Jewell Parker Rhodes
Although Gov. Greg Abbott has paused grid connections and environmental permitting for data centers, analysts say decisions on grid connections and other permits could resume before the end of the year.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026
Trading in the Korean Kospi was paused amid heavy selling, with the index closing 5.5% lower as chip makers Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix dropped 7.4% and 10% respectively.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026
As a result, he has paused recruitment for new jobs while investing in more robotic assembly.
From Barron's ● Oct. 11, 2026
“Mr. O’Malley spun his ever-present cigar, paused for just a second and replied, ‘I want to be remembered for planting a tree.’
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026
He paused to pull two apples from a tree, and though she wouldn’t stop and he had to run to catch up with her, Mal agreed to eat one.
From "Impossible Creatures" by Katherine Rundell
Maniscalco is an incredible businessman, and a pioneer in the craft of shouting a premise and then pausing until the audience agrees it’s a punchline.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 8, 2026
Our culture of ambition, output, and productivity makes pausing to have a snack, rest, or get some fresh air a luxury.
From Slate ● Sep. 23, 2026
Billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe's industrial giant Ineos is pausing production at its three plants in Hull, blaming high UK gas prices.
From BBC ● Sep. 22, 2026
Over the last two weeks, the Fed as well as the Bank of Japan and the European Central Bank have lifted interest rates, with the Bank of England pausing but threatening to lift rates further.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 18, 2026
“Ah, heaven, she gifs me the name that no one speaks since Minna died!” cried the Professor, pausing in a puddle to regard her with grateful delight.
From "Little Women" by Louisa May Alcott
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.
