hesitate

/ˌhɛzəˈteɪt/

/ˈhɛzɪteɪt/

Other forms: hesitated; hesitating; hesitates

To hesitate is to pause before doing something, often out of concern or worry.

If you're playing basketball and have a wide-open shot but don't take it right away, you hesitated. Maybe you felt too much pressure to shoot the ball. When people are nervous or worried, they tend to hesitate. Hesitating while speaking is common. In class, if you're not sure you have the right answer, you'll hesitate. When giving bad news, people often hesitate. Sometimes it makes sense to hesitate and sometimes you just need to do what you have to do.

Definitions of hesitate

1. verb

   pause or hold back in uncertainty or unwillingness
   “Authorities hesitate to quote exact figures”

   synonyms: waffle, waver

   types:

   dwell on, linger over

   delay

   boggle

   hesitate when confronted with a problem, or when in doubt or fear

   hover, linger

   linger or remain near a place

   hover, oscillate, vacillate, vibrate

   be undecided about something; waver between conflicting positions or courses of action

   falter, waver

   be unsure or weak

   shilly-shally, shillyshally

   hesitate or be unable to decide; go back and forth on
2. verb

   interrupt temporarily an activity before continuing
   synonyms: pause

   types:

   hem and haw

   utter `hems' and `haws'; indicated hesitation

   scruple

   hesitate on moral grounds

   type of:

   delay

   act later than planned, scheduled, or required