aspirate
Americanverb (used with object)
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aspirates,
present (3rd person singular)
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aspirated,
past participle, past
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aspirating
present participle
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Phonetics.
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to articulate (a speech sound, especially a stop) so as to produce an audible puff of breath, as with the first t of total, the second t being unaspirated.
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to articulate (the beginning of a word or syllable) with an h -sound, as in which, pronounced (hwich), or hitch as opposed to witch or itch.
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Medicine/Medical.
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to remove (a fluid) from a body cavity by use of an aspirator or suction syringe.
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to inhale (fluid or a foreign body) into the bronchi and lungs, often after vomiting.
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to draw or remove by suction.
noun
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Phonetics. a speech sound having as an obvious concomitant an audible puff of breath, as initial stop consonants or initial h -sounds.
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Medicine/Medical. the substance or contents that have been aspirated.
adjective
verb
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phonetics
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to articulate (a stop) with some force, so that breath escapes with audible friction as the stop is released
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to pronounce (a word or syllable) with an initial h
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to draw in or remove by inhalation or suction, esp to suck (air or fluid) from a body cavity or to inhale (fluid) into the lungs after vomiting
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to supply air to (an internal-combustion engine)
noun
adjective
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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aspiratesimple
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aspiratessimple
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have aspiratedperfect
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has aspiratedperfect
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am aspiratingprogressive
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are aspiratingprogressive
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is aspiratingprogressive
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have been aspiratingperfect progressive
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has been aspiratingperfect progressive
Past
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aspiratedsimple
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had aspiratedperfect
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was aspiratingprogressive
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were aspiratingprogressive
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had been aspiratingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of aspirate
First recorded in 1660–70; from Latin aspīrātus “breathed upon” (past participle of aspīrāre ); see origin at aspire, -ate 1
Explanation
To aspirate is to exhale or breathe air out as you speak. Many languages include word sounds that require the speaker to aspirate. Many speakers aspirate as they pronounce certain sounds, and in linguistics or speech therapy, it's a common term. In medicine, to aspirate is something very different — it means to suck or breathe in, often in a dangerous way. Someone who drowns, for example, aspirates water as they struggle. The Latin root is aspirare, "to breathe upon, blow upon, or breathe."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
In order to prevent the potential ectopic pregnancy from rupturing in the fallopian tube, which can lead to severe bleeding or death, a doctor would usually go in and aspirate the contents of the uterus.
From Salon ● Mar. 12, 2024
She is concerned that Óisín's cerebral palsy puts him at a greater risk of complications, saying she had been warned there was a danger he could aspirate.
From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2023
If you are gargling at the same time that you are hiccupping, you might aspirate water.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 13, 2023
Micro-fragmented adipose tissue and bone marrow aspirate treatments “are minimal manipulation and, as long as the physician is injecting ‘like into like,’ this is homologous use.
From Washington Post ● Nov. 5, 2021
He heard Mrs. Marks saying loudly, 'And please say good-bye for me to your husband,' the aspirate so emphasised that it was obviously an insecurity.
From The Promise of Air by Algernon Blackwood
That could change, if relatively painless and simple fine needle aspirates of the liver can capture enough tissue.
From Science Magazine ● Nov. 29, 2018
The bearded Ballard hoots and snarls and aspirates, but there’s no amount of disinfectant that can clean up the screen.
From The Guardian ● Jul. 31, 2014
And then there were tweets about 2016 presidential aspirates - or, rather, one presidential aspirant who has been the butt of many Twitter jokes of late.
From BBC ● Feb. 3, 2014
The British middle classes, however, have stubbornly continued to cling to their social aspirations and their aspirates.
From Time Magazine Archive
When excited Mrs. Marlings had some difficulty with her aspirates.
From Adventures of Bindle by Herbert George Jenkins
BRR-ungggggg…The naturally aspirated four-cylinder churned with a gurgling, drowning-motorcycle sound.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026
FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has also been pushing a return to naturally aspirated engines, first V10s early last year, and more recently V8s.
From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026
Verstappen - and Fernando Alonso and Lando Norris - has expressed his view this year that to return to "pure" racing, F1 should go back to naturally aspirated engines with no hybrid element.
From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026
The other time traveler is the engine: a naturally aspirated, 2.0-liter in-line four.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 23, 2026
He had few words, Brother Reuben, and the aspirated 'Ah!' was long drawn often, while he swiftly thought of something else to say.
From The Prophet of the Great Smoky Mountains by Mary Noailles Murfree
The autopsy determined he died from asphyxia after aspirating on his own vomit, and that his death was accidental.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2025
At the time, modern abortion medications were not available, and the technique was performed by aspirating the contents of the uterus through a tube.
From Scientific American ● Oct. 26, 2022
With the air breathers, there’s different ways that oil gets into their bodies and one of them is basically aspirating the oil, which gets into the lungs and the circulatory system.
From The Verge ● Oct. 8, 2021
Finally, came the important part: “aspirating framework” — indicating an aspirating detector in the cathedral’s attic, which was also known as the framework.
From Seattle Times ● Jul. 17, 2019
Formerly a very elaborate apparatus was employed for aspirating the air from the chamber through U-tubes and then returning the aspirated air to the chamber.
From Respiration Calorimeters for Studying the Respiratory Exchange and Energy Transformations of Man by Francis Gano Benedict
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