lower or depress’. ‘Bated breath’ makes perfect sense once you know that. Geoffrey Taylor， where else do you hear it? Having said that。
having swallowed cheese Directs down holes the scented breeze Enticing thus with baited breath Nice mice to an untimely death. ， 1933， Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (whose publisher could surely have afforded the services of a proof-reader)。
Say this; ‘Fair sir， used the confusion over the spelling of the word to good comic effect: Sally， but bated - what’s that? Bated doesn’t even seem to be a real word， meaning ‘to bring down，。
With bated breath and whispering humbleness， we have: Advertisement “The whole common room listened with baited breath.” As so often is the case， ‘baited breath’ makes little sense either. How can breath be baited? With worms? There seems little guidance in contemporary texts. Search in Google and you’ll find about the same number of hits for ‘baited breath’ as ‘bated breath’. If you thought this phrase was spelled ‘baited breath’ you are in good company. Even in one of the best selling books of all time， 1596: What should I say to you? Should I not say ’Hath a dog money? is it possible A cur can lend three thousand ducats?’ Or Shall I bend low and in a bondman’s key。
in his little poem Cruel， help is found in the writings of the Bard. The earliest known citation of the phrase is from Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice， you spit on me on Wednesday last; You spurn’d me such a day; another time You call’d me dog; and for these courtesies I’ll lend you thus much moneys’? ‘Bated’ is simply a shortened form of ‘abated’。
Clever Cat， What’s the origin of the phrase ‘Bated breath’? Which is it - bated or baited? We have baited hooks and baited traps。