hesitate
verbVerb Forms
Idioms | present simple I / you / we / they hesitate | |
| he / she / it hesitates | |
| past simple hesitated | |
| past participle hesitated | |
| -ing form hesitating |
- [intransitive, transitive]
to be slow to speak or act because you feel uncertain or nervous （对某事）犹豫，迟疑不决 She hesitated before replying. 她犹豫了一下才回答。 He seemed to hesitate a second. 他似乎犹豫了一下。 - hesitate about/over something
When she hesitated over her order, the waiter gave her an impatient look. 当她对自己点的菜犹豫不决时，服务员不耐烦地看了她一眼。 - hesitate about/over doing something
I didn't hesitate for a moment about taking the job. 我毫不犹豫地接受了那份工作。 - hesitate about/over whether, how, etc…
She stood there, hesitating over whether or not to tell him the truth. 她站在那里，犹豫要不要告诉他真相。 - + speech
‘I'm not sure,’ she hesitated. “我不确定。” 她犹豫不决地说。
Extra ExamplesSomething about his smile made her hesitate. 他微笑的样子令她犹豫起来。 I barely hesitated before saying yes. 我几乎没有犹豫就同意了。 I didn't hesitate about working with Craig. 和克雷格一起工作，我没有顾虑。 He was hesitating between a glass of wine and an orange juice. 他正拿不定主意，不知道该要葡萄酒还是橙汁。
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb- a little
- slightly
- briefly
- …
- appear to
- seem to
- make somebody
- …
- about
- between
- over
- …
- [intransitive] hesitate to do something
to be worried about doing something, especially because you are not sure that it is right or appropriate 顾虑；疑虑 Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any queries. 如果有疑问就请尽管和我联系。 If you'd like me to send you the book, then please don't hesitate to ask. 如果你想让我把书寄给你，请尽管问。 She never hesitated to speak her mind. 她毫不犹豫地说出了自己的想法。
More Like This Verbs usually followed by infinitivesVerbs usually followed by infinitives
Word Originearly 17th cent.: from Latin haesitat- ‘stuck fast, left undecided’, from the verb haesitare, from haerere ‘stick, stay’.
Idioms
he who hesitates (is lost)
- (saying)
if you delay in doing something you may lose a good opportunity 当断不断，反受其乱；优柔寡断者坐失良机