(intransitive) To stop or pause respecting decision or action; to be in suspense or uncertainty as to a determination.
He hesitated whether to accept the offer or not; men often hesitate in forming a judgment.
September 1, 1742, Alexander Pope, letter to Racine
I shall not hesitate to declare myself very cordially, in regard to some particulars about which you have desired an answer.
(intransitive) To stammer; to falter in speaking.
(transitive, poetic, rare) To utter with hesitation or to intimate by a reluctant manner.