“Don’t hold your breath” is an English idiom meaning something won’t happen, won’t happen for a long time, or won’t happen as expected. It is sarcastic and insulting, implying naivety or inability. It can refer to high expectations, delays, or something not happening at all. The context determines the appropriate meaning.
The phrase “don’t hold your breath” is an English idiom, or saying, meaning that something won’t happen, won’t happen for a long time, or won’t happen as expected. This is based on the idea that something will take so long to happen that holding your breath beforehand would be impossible. It is mildly sarcastic and implies that the initial statement before the saying is naïve, or that the person or mechanism required to bring about the desired situation is unable to do so. Being told that someone is not holding their breath is essentially an insult.
One situation where this idiom would be appropriate is when there are high expectations. If one speaker says he expects something to happen to some degree, like a construction company finishing a building in record time, another speaker might say, “Don’t hold your breath.” This would imply that there are circumstances that will prevent the company from completing the work in a shorter time frame than normal. It also implies that the circumstances are not pleasant, such as the physical impossibility of completing a building in the expected time.
Another meaning is that something will take much longer than normal. If that construction company is known for delaying projects or taking an unusually long time, a speaker might use the phrase to imply that anyone who expects a job to be done within a normal time frame is kidding themselves. Finally, the saying “don’t hold your breath” could mean that something is not going to happen at all. To use the developer example, if the first speaker says he expects a project to be completed but the developer has a record of disappearing with project money before starting work, the second speaker could use the phrase to imply that the first speaker shouldn’t expect to see anything done. In all cases, an explanation usually follows the sentence.
There is a literal meaning to “don’t hold your breath” and the context of the situation allows the speaker to distinguish which meaning is appropriate. For example, a weightlifting instructor teaching proper form might tell a client not to hold their breath as they lift the weight. In that case, the sarcasm of the idiom wouldn’t make sense, but the literal meaning of continuing to breathe instead of holding your breath would make sense.
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