You might have heard the expression ‘with bated breath,’ but what is it? It means that someone is waiting for a response or result with great anticipation. In this article, you’ll learn how to use this term correctly, where it comes from, and why you should never use the common misspelling ‘with baited breath.’
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What Does the Idiom With Bated Breath Mean?
‘With bated breath’ is an idiom that expresses a feeling of immense excitement or anticipation about something.
Fun Fact: Bated is actually a shortened form of abated, which means something has become less intense.
For example, a powerful hurricane that becomes less intense by the time it makes landfall has abated. Another example would be pressure abating (lessening) because of extending a deadline.
The phrase ‘with bated breath’ literally means that you are holding your breath while waiting for something to happen. Since you can’t actually do that in many cases, the phrase now has a widespread figurative meaning. This is feeling significant anticipation, excitement, or even fear of something happening.
The earliest known usage of the phrase is in William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice, published in 1605.
Example sentences:
- We’ll be waiting for the sequel with bated breath.
- Everyone in the courtroom listened with bated breath as the jury delivered its verdict.
- With bated breath, the family waited for test results as they sought to deal with their child’s mysterious illness.
- Yes, I am eagerly awaiting to find out the identity of the killer. With bated breath!
- Yeah, we’ll really be waiting with bated breath for your next corny joke.
- I’ll be waiting for you in April. With bated breath!
When and How to Use With Bated Breath?
‘With bated breath’ is fine to use in both spoken and written communication.
You can place the idiom at the beginning or end of a sentence or anywhere in between. It’s not common, but it is still sometimes okay if you use it on its own (see the fourth example above).
As the last example sentence shows, you can use ‘with bated breath’ sarcastically. Here are some situations where you might say you’re waiting ‘with bated breath.’
- You’re really excited for a new product to come out.
- The current season of your favorite show ended with a cliffhanger. Now, you can’t wait for the next season to start.
- You made a serious mistake on a project and are deeply worried about a bad outcome.
Is It ‘Bated’ Breath or ‘Baited’ Breath?
Only bated breath is the correct spelling. Remember, bated is just abated shortened.
If you were to write that someone was waiting with ‘baited’ breath, you’d be saying something totally different. Bait is something used to lure someone or something.
For example, an angler baits their hooks with bloodworms. Baiting is the act of luring someone or something. It can also be intentionally provoking someone to anger.
So, if someone is waiting with ‘baited’ breath, that means their breath smells like bait because they ate some!
Final Thoughts
‘With bated breath’ means to wait for something in anticipation or fear. A common misspelling is ‘baited breath,’ which doesn’t mean the same thing.
