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The phrase bated breath, used in a sentence such as "I am waiting for your answer with bated breath", refers to a state in which the speaker nearly stops breathing through fear, anxiety, awe, anticipation, or suspense.
In this sense, "bated" is a contraction of the word "abated".
However, some people misspell the phrase as "baited breath".
The words "bated" and "baited" are homonyms.
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