[whattajoke]

haha, what the hell is "baited breath" anyway?

[js1138]

I think it's the result of eating sushi.

[Right Wing Professor]

Now you've done it.

(Entering academic bore mode)

It's actually 'bated breath' (nearly everyone, including the NY Times, gets the spelling wrong). 'Bated' is an archaic form of 'abated'. 'With bated breath' is therefore equivalent to 'Holding one's breath'.

Having said that, I prefer the sushi explanation (post 334)