Bait, Bate, Bated, Baited, Bated Breath (not baited breath)
Mark waited for her bait with bated breath! What is that bait? Bertha was taking interminable time in cooking navaratna korma (an assortment of nine vegetables and fruits), then to broach a matter.
Bait functions as a noun and verb.
As a noun it has three meanings. Bait is a food item. Bait is an imitation food used by anglers while fishing. Bait (such as an insect or bits of meat) is put or attached to hook to catch fish by the anglers, or fishermen. Bait is also used to trap some animals.
What is the bait to use to trap rats and mice? Peanuts!
Anglers need a bait to catch the fish.
Bait is a food or fake food put on the fishing hook to catch the fish in a river or pond or stream.
Figuratively, bait refers to a thing that is used to attract or tempt someone or something.
Bone is used as a bait to train the dogs!
Bait as a verb refers to tormenting someone usually a chained animal. Bait also refers to tormenting someone by using abusive or insulting remarks. The other variants of the verb are baits, baited, baiting.
Bear-baiting was once not uncommon for entertainment but no more.
Rise to the bait and swallow the bait are idioms.
Bate as a verb refers to lessen the force, or intensity of something; moderating; to take away or subtracting. IN this sense, the word comes from ‘baten’ a short form of abate. Variants of bate are bates, bated, bating.
He bates his breath when he turns nostalgic.
Bate also means to flap or flutter wings frantically or wildly especially by the falcons or hawks in a state of anger or fear. In British English, bate as a noun refers to a person’s mood which is in rage or bad temper.
Bated breath is an idiom meaning holding one’s breath anxiously or curiously or excitedly like when you watch a cricket match between India and Pakistan, or climax of a movie, or mulling over what next in life for tomorrow.
All the members of the family waited in the hospital’s visitors’ room with bated breath for the news from the doctor about their dear one who was in ICU.
I am waiting for my visa of residence permit to Europe with bated breath (adjective).
Do we watch movies these days with bated breath?
People gamble with bated breath unless the gambler has reconciled to lose the stake.
