With Baited Breath

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. If you're watching the Olympics and Simone Biles is performing a new dismount to win the gold, you might watch her dizzying twists and flips with bated breath.

With Baited Breath

Bait refers to small pieces of food used to catch fish or lure animals into traps. So it's not possible to have baited breath, even if you eat a ton of minnows. The association of bait with a trap ready to spring may lead people to misuse this expression, even in national publications:

While the world is waiting with baited breath for the announcement that Beyoncé's much-anticipated twins have arrived, the Internet has come up with plenty of theories about this milestone event. (Time)

We've now spent around 85 straight minutes this season with the show just spinning around in its own private circle, waiting with baited breath for something to change, or for the show's comic-book bad guy to show even a hint of nuance. (The Verge)

Now it feels like the whole economy waits for the CPI with bated breath. The next release will come out Wednesday morning, when the federal government will give us an idea of how much prices changed in the year that terminated last month. [Marketplace]

The correct spelling of the idiom that means in a nervous or excited state is bated breath, not baited breath. Use this expression in your writing so you can consider yourself better than JK Rowling at one point!

For those who know the older spelling or who stop to consider the matter, baited breath evokes an incongruous image; Geoffrey Taylor humorously (and consciously) captured it in verse in his poem Cruel Clever Cat:

As for how he's done it this offseason, "We're really excited about the recruiting class, we're really excited with who we were able to bring in to our program," Baker said. "It's very difficult to go into recruiting knowing what you have to replace because you're kind of paranoid. 'I've lost this, this and this, I have to replace this, this and this.

The biggest priority in the offseason was replacing departed Katia Gallegos and Destiny Thurman, the two point guards who entered the transfer portal and ended up at Tulsa and Colorado State, respectively and with Boyd and Jackson, Baker thinks he's done that.

I was waiting with baited breath until I could order my prints. I was then waiting with baited breath until the order was confirmed. I then waited with baited breath until they arrived here in Melbourne, Australia. Now I am waiting with baited breath until they are back from the framing shop and I can hang all three in my house and gaze at them adoringly each time I pass them.

Shylock is speaking, with heavy sarcasm, to Antonio in the Merchant of Venice (I,iii). A bondman is a slave or an indentured servant who could be expected to speak in a quiet voice to his masters and betters.

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Bad breath, which is sometimes called halitosis, occurs when sulfur compounds are released during break down of proteins in mucous and food by bacteria in your mouth. Voted most likely to have this effect: sweets and dairy products.

Other possible causes of bad breath are odors from foods like onions and garlic (which make their way to your lungs), tobacco use, and anything that dries out your mouth. This can include your medications since many have dry mouth as a side effect.

First, see your dentist to make sure your mouth is healthy. Persistent bad breath is one sign of gum disease. Pockets between your teeth and gums trap food and bacteria and those pesky sulfur compounds. Cavities in your teeth can also catch food and plaque and have the same effect. Treating your gum disease or cavities will often reduce bad breath. If you smoke or chew tobacco, quitting will not only help your breath, it will help reduce your risk of other diseases. Your dentist will also ask for a health history that may highlight medical conditions that contribute to bad breath. If this is the case, you will be referred to a medical doctor for follow up.

Once your mouth is healthy, anything that increases your saliva will help your bad breath. Try to stay hydrated. Plain water (rather than the flavored varieties) is the best for counteracting bad breath. Green tea contains polyphenols that have been shown to reduce sulfur compounds; however, adding milk or sugar to the tea increases bacterial activity in your mouth and decreases its effectiveness. Mint tea has been shown to be quite effective at neutralizing garlic oils.

Fibrous vegetables or fruits are also helpful for increasing your saliva, and their firmness will scrape some plaque off your teeth. Fruits have natural sugars in them so vegetables, such as cucumbers or celery, are slightly better choices. Parsley, which is often used as a garnish, also seems to have some anti-bad-breath properties when it is chewed.

You may be tempted to turn to mouthwashes to help with your bad breath. Some mouthwashes merely mask the problem and do not do anything to help it. Choose one with antibacterial properties to help temporarily reduce the number of bacteria in your mouth or choose one specially formulated for relief of dry mouth.

You should also make sure you are brushing and flossing correctly. You should brush at least twice a day for at least 2 minutes each time. Floss once a day, making sure you are keeping the floss tight against your tooth and taking the floss below the gum. You may also want to clean your tongue with your toothbrush, a tongue brush or tongue scraper. Tea tree oil has antibacterial properties and some experts recommend placing a drop at the back of your tongue. (Tea tree oil is not recommended if you are pregnant or breast-feeding since it has not been tested for safety in these situations.) If you are not sure how to brush or floss, ask your dentist or hygienist.

According to worldwidewords.org, Shakespeare was the first writer known to use it. In "The Merchant of Venice" Shylock says to Antonio: "Shall I bend low and, in a bondman's key, / With bated breath and whisp'ring humbleness, / Say this ...".

Waverley Abbey was founded in 1128 as the first Cistercian abbey in England, with an abbot and a dozen monks coming from Normandy to make this institution their new home. It was inhabited by Cistercian monks until King Henry VIII dissolved the monasteries in 1536.

Along with her pack, Baited Breath had taken down a Dragon Hunter outpost slightly during the events of "The Longest Day". She had pretended to be injured, whining in pain, before a Hunter approached her and the rest of the pack staged an ambush.

THE FIRST FERTILE area for Democrats is Alito's responses to questions about Roe v. Wade. The hearings have been admirable for the honesty with which a few Republicans attacked Roe head-on. Senators Sam Brownback and Tom Coburn made it clear they think Roe was wrongly decided, is not protected by stare decisis, and should be overturned. Most Republicans agree with that analysis but refuse to say so publicly, especially in the context of a Supreme Court hearing. Alito himself didn't concur with Brownback and Coburn, but his comments should be almost as troubling for Democrats. If John Roberts's abortion code words were that Roe is "settled law," Alito's were that stare decisis is not an "inexorable command," an echo of a Louis Brandeis quote used by William Rehnquist in his 1992 argument for overturning Roe. Both Roberts and Alito left themselves wiggle room on the issue, but the "settled law" sound bite sent a message that Roberts favors the status quo. "Inexorable command," on the other hand, is a reminder that a Justice Alito would not be so deferential to precedents he finds unconstitutional. No Democrat can accuse Alito of disingenuousness if he's confirmed and one day casts a vote to reverse Roe.

Like Bush, Alito is a unitarian, as devotees of the theory are known. "We were strong proponents of the theory of the unitary executive, that all federal executive power is vested by the Constitution in the president," he said in a speech to the Federalist Society in 2000. "And I thought then, and I still think, that this theory best captures the meaning of the Constitution's text and structure." For Democrats, Alito's deference to the president and his worship of Article II might be attractive grounds on which to try to stop his nomination. After all, Democrats note, the argument has the advantage of dovetailing with their current critique of Bush as an unchecked, out-of-control president, as well as their case against the "corrupt" GOP congressional leadership that acts as a rubber stamp for Bush policies. Under this scenario, stopping Alito could turn into a proxy war for stopping Bush. Which is one reason that a filibuster, though not a likely scenario, might still tempt Democrats.

Dear Abby: Four years ago, I became friends with a co-worker and things took off too fast. Within a couple of months, I became pregnant. We were thrown together without really even knowing each other because, deep down, we wanted a family and decided to stick it out. 041b061a72