give (someone) pause
idiom
: to cause (someone) to stop and think about something carefully or to have doubts about something
I was going to ask her for help, but the look on her face gave me pause.
Examples of give (someone) pause in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
But does an 8-1 Game 4 spanking in Edmonton give pause to the would-bet celebrants in South Florida?
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Greg Cote, Miami Herald, 16 June 2024
Moon mining, whether for water or rare-earth metals, remains science fiction today, and tends to give pause to casual observers, who imagine looking up, horrified, at a strip-mined lunar surface.
—David W. Brown, The New Yorker, 4 Mar. 2024
What should give pause is projections on what Nvidia will need to earn, say, a decade hence to be worth anything like its current cap of $1.91 trillion.
—Shawn Tully, Fortune, 22 Feb. 2024
Seeing so many newly public companies in danger of getting kicked off exchanges is likely to give pause to those contemplating listings and IPO investors alike.
—Corrie Driebusch, WSJ, 19 Dec. 2022
See all Example Sentences for give (someone) pause 
Greg Cote, Miami Herald, 16 June 2024
Moon mining, whether for water or rare-earth metals, remains science fiction today, and tends to give pause to casual observers, who imagine looking up, horrified, at a strip-mined lunar surface.
—David W. Brown, The New Yorker, 4 Mar. 2024
What should give pause is projections on what Nvidia will need to earn, say, a decade hence to be worth anything like its current cap of $1.91 trillion.
—Shawn Tully, Fortune, 22 Feb. 2024
Seeing so many newly public companies in danger of getting kicked off exchanges is likely to give pause to those contemplating listings and IPO investors alike.
—Corrie Driebusch, WSJ, 19 Dec. 2022
See all Example Sentences for give (someone) pause
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'give (someone) pause.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near give (someone) pause
Cite this Entry
“Give (someone) pause.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/give%20%28someone%29%20pause. Accessed 27 Jul. 2024.
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