hit the pause button

verb

To pause some process; to make a temporary halt.

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Meanings

verbhit the pause button (third-person singular simple present hits the pause button, present participle hitting the pause button, simple past and past participle hit the pause button)

present singular third person hits the pause button · participle present hitting the pause button

  1. informalTo pause some process; to make a temporary halt.
    1 more example

    2026 February 17, Sean Seddon, Angus Thompson, Bernadette McCague, "Dual nationals face scramble for UK passports as new rules come into force" (BBC News) https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cx2d9yk2kpjo She has called on the government to "urgently hit the pause button" and introduce a "low-cost, one-off travel authorisation" for dual nationals who have found their travel plans disrupted.

Cite this entry
APA

hit the pause button. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hit%20the%20pause%20button

MLA

“hit the pause button.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hit%20the%20pause%20button. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “hit the pause button,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hit%20the%20pause%20button.

Source: hit the pause button on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.