a short stop or break in speech, action, or movement
After a long speech, the speaker took a brief pause to drink water.
There was an awkward pause when no one knew what to say.
✦ Late Middle English from Old French, from Latin pausa ‘halt, stop.’
to stop an action or speech for a short time before continuing
She paused the movie to answer the phone.
He paused before opening the mysterious letter.
✦ From the noun pause; first used as a verb in the late 16th century.
