Meaning & use
pausing
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“pausing” is a form of “pause”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
verbintransitive
Stopping for a short time in an action or speech before continuing.
Grammar: No object; often followed by to: pausing to think.
Patterns
- pausing for something
- pausing to do something
She kept talking without pausing to breathe.
The hikers are pausing at the top to enjoy the view.
He walked on, pausing only to tie his shoe.
verbtransitive
Temporarily stopping a recording, video, game or process so that it can be resumed later.
Grammar: Takes an object: pausing the video.
Patterns
- pausing something
- pausing something for a while
I'm pausing the movie so we can order food.
She is pausing her subscription during the summer.
They are pausing the experiment until the equipment arrives.
Word forms
| base form | pause |
|---|---|
| third person singular | pauses |
| past tense | paused |
Common combinations
- pausing for breath
- He climbed the stairs, pausing for breath on each landing.
- pausing to think
- She answered slowly, pausing to think before each sentence.
- pausing the video
- Pausing the video helps me take notes.
- without pausing
- He read the whole speech without pausing.
Synonyms and how they differ
- stopping
- It can mean ending completely, whereas pausing suggests you will start again soon.
- halting
- It is more formal and abrupt, often for movement or traffic.
- hesitating
- It adds the idea of uncertainty, while pausing can be a deliberate short break.
- breaking
- It suggests a longer or more planned rest, as in breaking for lunch.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: pausing or pawing?
pausing vs pawing
Pawing is the -ing form of paw, meaning touching or scratching with an animal's foot, and it has a different meaning from pausing.
Practice
The speaker kept going for ten minutes without ____ once.
Choose one answer.
After the preposition without, a verb takes the -ing form, so pausing is correct. The other forms cannot follow without in this way.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “pausing”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.