Bated breath refers to holding one’s breath in excitement or anxiety. It refers to a situation where there is a lot of anticipation and nervousness about something that is going to happen. It was a verb used in falconry, meaning to jump violently from a perch to the falconer’s fist. That would often involve a flapping of wings and straining against the leash in an effort to escape. The idiom “bated breath” has an interesting history rooted in English literature and language evolution. The phrase means holding one’s breath in anticipation or suspense, often with a mix of anxiety and excitement. The meaning of WITH BATED BREATH is in a nervous and excited state anticipating what will happen. How to use with bated breath in a sentence. WITH BATED BREATH definition: Eagerly or anxiously, as in We waited for the announcement of the winner with bated breath. This expression literally means “holding one's breath” (bate means “restrain”). “Bated breath” is an idiomatic expression that means to wait anxiously or eagerly for something, often in suspense. It suggests that someone is holding their breath in anticipation of an outcome or event. Bated breath is an idiomatic expression that means holding one’s breath in excitement. Learn its origin and difference from baited breath. Eagerly or anxiously, as in We waited for the announcement of the winner with bated breath. This expression literally means holding one's breath ( bate means restrain ). Bated breath first appeared in Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice in 1605. 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. ‘Bated’ is simply a shortened form of ‘abated’, meaning ‘to bring down, lower or depress’. ‘Bated breath’ makes perfect sense once you know that. Geoffrey Taylor, in his little poem Cruel, Clever Cat, 1933, used the confusion over the spelling of the word to good comic effect: Nice mice to an untimely death.