press pause

verb

To temporarily stop a process.

Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

verbpress pause (third-person singular simple present presses pause, present participle pressing pause, simple past and past participle pressed pause)

present singular third person presses pause · participle present pressing pause · participle past pressed pause · past pressed pause

  1. informalintransitiveTo temporarily stop a process.

    Chinese state media has pressed pause on the US-bashing, releasing a raft of commentaries extolling the merits of resetting relations and working on co-operation.

    2023 November 15, Tessa Wong, “Xi Jinping arrives in US as his Chinese Dream sputters”, in BBC

Origin

By analogy with the "pause" button on a media player.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

press pause. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/press%20pause

MLA

“press pause.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/press%20pause. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “press pause,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/press%20pause.

Source: press pause on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.