PAUSING Synonyms: 24 Similar and Opposite Words

pausing

verb

present participle of pause

as in hesitating

to come to a temporary halt in one's activity he paused for a moment to regain his composure

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of pausing North Carolina has the lowest gas prices in the United States after pausing the gas tax, but not everyone gassing up their vehicles is happy. — Eva Flowe october 22, Charlotte Observer, 22 Oct. 2026 The Offspring’s co-founding guitarist Noodles is pausing on performing due to a health scare. — Emily St. Martin, Los Angeles Times, 22 Oct. 2026 Representative Greg Casar and Senator Bernie Sanders have called for pausing advanced AI development and banning superintelligence. — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 17 Oct. 2026 Reese began before trailing off, looking away, and pausing for about three seconds. — Dan Zaksheske Outkick, FOXNews.com, 17 Oct. 2026 The White House did not immediately explain how pausing the sanctions was in the national interest. — Will Weissert, Fortune, 17 Oct. 2026 Companies across the industry have been idling facilities, with Suntory pausing production at one of Jim Beamâ€™s three Kentucky distilleries to upgrade the site while demand is low. — Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson, semafor.com, 16 Oct. 2026 Last month, the Supreme Court allowed construction of the ballroom to continue, pausing a ruling from a federal judge halting the project. — Winston Cho, HollywoodReporter, 15 Oct. 2026 The pushback against data centers continues to spread across the Bay Area and across the country, with San Francisco and Oakland joining others in pausing their development. — CBS News, 7 Oct. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for pausing

hesitating

Verb

With more than seven million people packed into over 9,000 high-rises, efficiency is key here, and people will judge you for holding up lines, hesitating with your Octopus card, or lingering over your dim sum table while others are waiting.

— Lee Cobaj, Condé Nast Traveler, 20 Oct. 2026
But experts have worried that doctors are hesitating to offer treatment without an ironclad diagnosis, which clinicians say can take time and increase risks to the mother.

— Andrea Suozzo, ProPublica, 9 Sep. 2026