as in hesitating
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 pausing
To resolve this problem, start by pausing the cycle and redistributing the laundry in the drum according to its weight and size.
—
Timothy Dale, Better Homes & Gardens, 6 Nov. 2025
Mike Weiss, current showrunner of mothership FBI, is in talks to add showrunner duties on CIA, sources said, with production pausing during the changeover.
—Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 6 Nov. 2025
And pausing telehealth is not as simple as turning a switch on or off, says Hughes.
—Yuki Noguchi, NPR, 6 Nov. 2025
The experience of watching All’s Fair is, indeed, like paging through a high-end women’s magazine, taking in the fashion spreads and pithy pull quotes but never pausing for long enough to read a full article.
—Judy Berman, Time, 5 Nov. 2025
Per the footage, she could be seen pausing between verses and lifting the mic back up to her face upside-down.
—Ilana Kaplan, PEOPLE, 5 Nov. 2025
The White House is set to resume public tours in December as part of the holiday season after initially pausing them due to the construction of the new ballroom.
—Peter Aitken, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Oct. 2025
My campaign is focused on legally pausing the applications for rezoning so that all present developments that are in various stages of construction become occupy.
—Nora O'Neill, Charlotte Observer, 29 Oct. 2025
As Consuelos spoke, a loud buzzing noise clapped through the studio space, with the actor pausing to take note of the distraction in the moment.
—Joey Nolfi, Entertainment Weekly, 28 Oct. 2025
Timothy Dale, Better Homes & Gardens, 6 Nov. 2025
Mike Weiss, current showrunner of mothership FBI, is in talks to add showrunner duties on CIA, sources said, with production pausing during the changeover.
—Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 6 Nov. 2025
And pausing telehealth is not as simple as turning a switch on or off, says Hughes.
—Yuki Noguchi, NPR, 6 Nov. 2025
The experience of watching All’s Fair is, indeed, like paging through a high-end women’s magazine, taking in the fashion spreads and pithy pull quotes but never pausing for long enough to read a full article.
—Judy Berman, Time, 5 Nov. 2025
Per the footage, she could be seen pausing between verses and lifting the mic back up to her face upside-down.
—Ilana Kaplan, PEOPLE, 5 Nov. 2025
The White House is set to resume public tours in December as part of the holiday season after initially pausing them due to the construction of the new ballroom.
—Peter Aitken, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Oct. 2025
My campaign is focused on legally pausing the applications for rezoning so that all present developments that are in various stages of construction become occupy.
—Nora O'Neill, Charlotte Observer, 29 Oct. 2025
As Consuelos spoke, a loud buzzing noise clapped through the studio space, with the actor pausing to take note of the distraction in the moment.
—Joey Nolfi, Entertainment Weekly, 28 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pausing
hesitating
Verb
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Chamandy said that, because of the ambiguity associated with the tariffs, companies are still hesitating to change suppliers until the dust settles.—
Meghan Hall,
Sourcing Journal,
3 Nov. 2025
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For now, Ian’s hesitating to tell Mike.—
Noel Murray,
Vulture,
26 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Pausing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pausing. Accessed 14 Nov. 2025.
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