Pause may refer to any of the following:

  1. Software function represented as two vertical lines (the middle button in the image) that allows users of a software program to temporarily halt what is currently running or playing. A good example of the pause function is the button in audio programs such as a CD or MP3 player.

  2. Microsoft operating system command that enables the user to momentarily stop a batch file or other computer functions. See the pause command page for additional information about this command.

Many media players including online video players like YouTube allow you to pause and play a video or audio file by pressing the spacebar.

  • How to pause a print job in Windows.
  • What are the most common symbols used by computers?

Another example is to pause a command, for example, typing dir /p displays the contents of a directory in MS-DOS one page at a time. Other MS-DOS and Linux commands that lack a page or pause switch can also be stopped by piping the command to more. For example, in Linux typing ls | more displays the ls command one page at a time.

  1. Sometimes abbreviated as Pa, Pause is a key and feature that stops the scrolling of text or loading of a program. See our Pause key page for further information.

CD terms, Play, Resume, Skip, Sleep