The most popular online dictionary and thesaurus for learners of English
suspend
/səˈspend/ verb [T]Definition
› to stop something, either temporarily or permanently, from happening or continuing: The group's shares were suspended at 199p while the takeover deal was finalized.suspend production/service/trading The Stock Exchange will suspend trading in the group's shares if they do not secure financing over the next two weeks.suspend accounts/payments If users ignore messages warning them not to download files illegally, their accounts could be suspended. indefinitely/permanently/temporarily suspended
› HR, POLITICS if an organization suspends an employee or member, it temporarily stops them from working or from being a member, often because they have done something wrong: suspend sb from sth/doing sth She was suspended from her £150,000-a-year job for six months. Pakistan was suspended from the Commonwealth for failing to lift emergency rule by the deadline.be suspended for 6 days/2 weeks/3 months, etc. Mr Morris, who has been suspended for a year, expects to return to his job after a meeting of governors. The director was suspended on full pay pending the outcome of the investigation.
› LAW to give someone a punishment, especially a prison sentence, that will not be carried out if they do not do anything else illegal within a particular period: She was given an 18-month suspended sentence for her part in the fraud. He pleaded guilty and was given a 12-month sentence suspended for 12 months.
(Definition of suspend verb from the Cambridge Business English Dictionary
© Cambridge University Press)
Focus on the pronunciation of suspend
Our dictionaries
Browse the Thesaurus
Browse the Dictionary
Word of the Day
spurn
to refuse to accept something or someone because you feel that they are not worth having
Blog
Read our blog about how the English language behaves.
New Words
Find words and meanings that have just started to be used in English, and let us know what you think of them.
