Verbal hesitation is a common phenomenon in which a person pauses or stutters when speaking. The two crossword solutions for this term are HAW and HEM, both of which are three-letter words. HAW is an interjection that expresses surprise, hesitation, or doubt, while HEM is an interjection used to fill pauses in speech or to express hesitation or embarrassment. Both of these words can be used to describe the phenomenon of verbal hesitation.