respire
respired; respiring; respires
To respire is to breathe in and out. After a calf is born, a farmer might watch it respire for a while to make sure it's okay.
While you can use the verb respire simply to mean "breathe," it's most often used in a medical or scientific context. A nurse might worry about the rate at which a patient respires, and a biologist might discuss the way a plant respires at night, when light doesn't reach its leaves. The Latin root, respirare, means "breathe again" or "breathe in and out," from re-, "again," and spirare, "to breathe."
Definitions of respire
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draw air into, and expel out of, the lungs“The patient is respiring”
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synonyms:
breathe, suspire, take a breath
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types:
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choke
breathe with great difficulty, as when experiencing a strong emotion
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hyperventilate
breathe excessively hard and fast
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hiccough, hiccup
breathe spasmodically, and make a sound
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sigh, suspire
heave or utter a sigh; breathe deeply and heavily
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breathe out, exhale, expire
expel air
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breathe in, inhale, inspire
draw in (air)
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wheeze
breathe with difficulty
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yawn
utter a yawn, as from lack of oxygen or when one is tired
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saw logs, saw wood, snore
breathe noisily during one's sleep
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aspirate
suck in (air)
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snort
make a snorting sound by exhaling hard
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blow
exhale hard
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sniff, sniffle
inhale audibly through the nose
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snivel, snuffle
snuff up mucus through the nose
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snuff
inhale audibly through the nose
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drag, draw, puff
suck in or take (air)
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huff, snort
inhale recreational drugs
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gasp
inhale sharply and suddenly, as with shock
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breathe easily again, as after exertion or anxiety
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Synonyms:
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breathe, suspire, take a breath
draw air into, and expel out of, the lungs
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type of:
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breathe, suspire, take a breath
draw air into, and expel out of, the lungs
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breathe, suspire, take a breath
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undergo the biomedical and metabolic processes of respiration by taking up oxygen and producing carbon monoxide
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Synonyms:
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breathe, suspire, take a breath
draw air into, and expel out of, the lungs
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type of:
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undergo
pass through
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breathe, suspire, take a breath
DISCLAIMER: These example sentences appear in various news sources and books to reflect the usage of the word ‘respire'.
Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Vocabulary.com or its editors.
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