Is it bated breath or baited breath?
The word bated is an abbreviation of the word abated, meaning to lessen in severity or amount. Bated is rarely used on its own as an adjective or verb anymore, but it lingers in the English language in the phrase bated breath. Baited breath is a common misspelling of bated breath.
How do you use bated breath in a sentence?
Flora and I waited with bated breath to hear what Evelyn considered sensible. I was waiting with bated breath for him to say something, anything, that wasn’t a cliché. Once, twice, and he waited with bated breath, trapped by a childhood memory. She waited with bated breath for their host to emerge from the shadows.
Who said waiting with bated breath?
The phrase ‘bated breath’ seems to have been used by William Shakespeare for the first time in his play ‘The Merchant of Venice’ in 1596. The major character, Shylock says; “Shall I bend low and in a bondman’s key, With bated breath and whispering humbleness.”
Where did the term baited breath come from?
You’ll breathe easier once you master this frequently misused phrase. Bated breath first appeared in Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice in 1605. Using a shortened form of abated, which means “stopped or reduced,” the phrase refers to people holding their breath in excitement or fear as they wait to see what happens next.
What does baited mean slang?
to intentionally make a person angry by saying or doing things to annoy them: Ignore him – he’s just baiting you. I suspect he was just baiting me. SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases. Causing feelings of anger and displeasure.
How do you spell with bated breath?
Eagerly or anxiously, as in We waited for the announcement of the winner with bated breath. This expression literally means “holding one’s breath” (bate means “restrain”).
What is the origin of the term baited breath?
Bated breath first appeared in Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice in 1605. Using a shortened form of abated, which means “stopped or reduced,” the phrase refers to people holding their breath in excitement or fear as they wait to see what happens next.
What does the Shakespearian phrase bated breath mean?
In Shakespeare’s original text, “bated breath” is short of “abated breath,” as in diminished both in volume and power. To wait with bated breath therefore means to become as still and quiet as possible, waiting with great anxiety and anticipation.
What’s the meaning of the phrase to bandy words with?
Definition of bandy words old-fashioned. : to say angry words in an argument : to argue I don’t want to bandy words with you.
What does bated breath mean Shakespeare?
What’s the difference between ” baited ” and ” Bated ” Breath?
“Baited” Versus “Bated”. “Bated” is a form of “abate,” which means “to diminish, beat down, or reduce.” So when you’re waiting with bated (read: abated) breath, you’re so eager, anxious, excited, or frightened that you’re almost holding your breath. Shakespeare used the phrase “with bated breath” in The Merchant of Venice.
Where does the phrase Bated Breath come from?
Bated breath is a phrase first mentioned in Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice. The word bated is an abbreviation of the word abated, meaning to lessen in severity or amount. Bated is rarely used on its own as an adjective or verb anymore, but it lingers in the English language in the phrase bated breath.
What is the meaning of the word bated?
“Bated” is a form of “abate,” which means “to diminish, beat down, or reduce.” So when you’re waiting with bated (read: abated) breath, you’re so eager, anxious, excited, or frightened that you’re almost holding your breath.
Where did the phrase’the whole common room listened with baited breath’come from?
“The whole common room listened with baited breath.” As so often is the case, help is found in the writings of the Bard. The earliest known citation of the phrase is from Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice, 1596: