as in hesitated
to come to a temporary halt in one's activity
he paused for a moment to regain his composure
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Recent Examples of paused
Andrii Yalanskyi/Getty Images A Federal Reserve meeting in the final days of April that resulted in interest rates staying paused may not have been the development millions of American borrowers were hoping for.
—
Matt Richardson, CBS News, 11 May 2026
Operations were paused at Delta’s Orlando terminal that night following the collision, with one departing flight being canceled, according to the airline.
—Silas Morgan, The Orlando Sentinel, 11 May 2026
But Laesch said during his State of the City Address last month that the federal government had again paused the special census.
—R. Christian Smith, Chicago Tribune, 11 May 2026
But an appeals court paused the ruling pending more legal wrangling.
—Dave Goldiner, New York Daily News, 11 May 2026
Cal Fire paused new timber sales and, citing public safety, halted some that were underway — including one expected to generate millions of dollars for Myles Anderson’s logging company.
—Lila Seidman, Los Angeles Times, 10 May 2026
Trump had paused Project Freedom at the request of Pakistan, which is mediating peace negotiations, in order to allow Iran to agree to a deal.
—Claire Carter, The Washington Examiner, 9 May 2026
Traffic will be paused intermittently along FM 1709 between Randol Mill/Davis Boulevard and Peytonville.
—Fousia Abdullahi, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 9 May 2026
Clinics in the state immediately paused their work.
—Romy Ellenbogen, Miami Herald, 8 May 2026
Matt Richardson, CBS News, 11 May 2026
Operations were paused at Delta’s Orlando terminal that night following the collision, with one departing flight being canceled, according to the airline.
—Silas Morgan, The Orlando Sentinel, 11 May 2026
But Laesch said during his State of the City Address last month that the federal government had again paused the special census.
—R. Christian Smith, Chicago Tribune, 11 May 2026
But an appeals court paused the ruling pending more legal wrangling.
—Dave Goldiner, New York Daily News, 11 May 2026
Cal Fire paused new timber sales and, citing public safety, halted some that were underway — including one expected to generate millions of dollars for Myles Anderson’s logging company.
—Lila Seidman, Los Angeles Times, 10 May 2026
Trump had paused Project Freedom at the request of Pakistan, which is mediating peace negotiations, in order to allow Iran to agree to a deal.
—Claire Carter, The Washington Examiner, 9 May 2026
Traffic will be paused intermittently along FM 1709 between Randol Mill/Davis Boulevard and Peytonville.
—Fousia Abdullahi, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 9 May 2026
Clinics in the state immediately paused their work.
—Romy Ellenbogen, Miami Herald, 8 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for paused
hesitated
Verb
-
The most likely explanation for the wave-off is that, after Barbashev’s dump-in, LaCombe might have hesitated, if only for a fateful moment, while Eichel went hard after the puck.—
Eric Stephens,
New York Times,
5 May 2026
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Large oil producers have hesitated to make long-term capital decisions based on a potentially short-term war.—
Jordan Blum,
Fortune,
4 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Paused.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/paused. Accessed 16 May. 2026.
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