Pause

How to spell pause

5 letters · 1 syllable

How to pronounce pause

What does pause mean?

1. nounA temporary stop or interval in action, speech, or sound.
2. verbTo stop an action or process temporarily before continuing.

Pause in a sentence

• noun

  There was a long pause before she answered the awkward question.

• verb

  Please pause the recording while I take notes.

• noun

  The speaker built a dramatic pause into the middle of his presentation.

• verb

  He had to pause midway through the report to verify a figure.

Where does pause come from?

Language of origin: Greek

This word traces back to the Greek pausis, meaning 'a stopping' or 'a ceasing', which was formed from the verb pauein, 'to stop or bring to an end'. The Greek noun passed into Latin as pausa, carrying the same idea of a halt or interval, and from there it moved into Old French as pause. English adopted it in the fifteenth century, first describing a temporary halt in speech or music before broadening to any brief interruption of action. The same ancient root survives in 'menopause', literally the ceasing of monthly cycles, which is a handy reminder of the 'stopping' sense. The spelling keeps the Latin -au- and the final silent -e, and it is the sound it shares with 'paws' that most often trips writers up rather than the letters themselves.

How the word is built

• paus- (from Latin/Greek pausa, pausis: a stopping)
• silent -e

Words that sound like pause

They sound the same but mean different things, so the meaning decides which spelling to write.

• paws: The clawed or padded feet of an animal such as a cat, dog or bear.