pause

[ pawz ]
/ pɔz /

noun

verb (used without object), paused, paus·ing.

to make a brief stop or delay; wait; hesitate: He paused at the edge of the pool for a moment. I'll pause in my lecture so we can all get some coffee.
to dwell or linger (usually followed by on or upon): to pause upon a particular point.

Idioms for pause

    give pause, to cause to hesitate or be unsure, as from surprise or doubt: These frightening statistics give us pause.

Origin of pause

1400–50; (noun) Middle English < Latin pausa < Greek paûsis a halt, equivalent to paú(ein) to stop + -sis -sis; (v.) derivative of the noun

SYNONYMS FOR pause

1–3 suspension, interruption, break, halt; hiatus, lacuna.
7 rest.
8 tarry, delay.

OTHER WORDS FROM pause

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH pause

pause paws pores pours

Words nearby pause

paupiette, paur, pauraque, pauropod, pausanias, pause, pautrier's microabscess, pav, pavage, pavane, pavarotti

British Dictionary definitions for give pause

pause
/ (pɔːz) /

verb (intr)

to cease an action temporarily; stop
to hesitate; delay she replied without pausing

noun

a temporary stop or rest, esp in speech or action; short break
prosody another word for caesura
Also called: fermata music a continuation of a note or rest beyond its normal length Usual symbol:
give pause to to cause to hesitate

Derived forms of pause

pausal, adjective pauser, noun pausing, noun, adjective

Word Origin for pause

C15: from Latin pausa pause, from Greek pausis, from pauein to halt

Medical definitions for give pause

pause
[ pôz ]

n.

A temporary stop or cessation.

Idioms and Phrases with give pause (1 of 2)

give pause

Cause one to hesitate, as in The high monthly installment payments gave me pause, or, as Shakespeare put it in Hamlet (3:1): “For in that sleep of death what dreams may come ... Must give us pause.” [c. 1600]

Idioms and Phrases with give pause (2 of 2)

pause

see give pause.