phrasal verb · neutral
give pause
UK/ɡɪv pɔːz/US/ɡɪv pɔz/give·PAUSE
to cause someone to hesitate or think carefully; to cause doubt or concern
Examples
“The dramatic rise in cases should give policymakers pause before easing restrictions.”
“Her sudden resignation gave everyone pause and led to further investigation.”
“The new evidence gives one pause about the original conclusion.”
Band 8 sentence
“The unexpected results of the trial give pause to clinicians considering a wider rollout of the therapy.”
Collocations
- give someone pause
- give pause to + noun (e.g., concern)
Word family
Common mistakes
give a pause→give pause
gave pause to me→gave me pause
Say it for a higher band
5make someone think→6cause hesitation→7+give pause
Synonyms
cause hesitation
give one reason to think
Easily confused
make one think
“The statistics really make you think about our priorities.”
Related words
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