respire

American  

[ri-spahyuhr] / rɪˈspaɪər /

verb (used without object)

respired, respiring

1. to inhale and exhale air for the purpose of maintaining life; breathe.

2. to breathe freely again, after anxiety, trouble, etc.

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verb (used with object)

respired, respiring

1. to breathe; inhale and exhale.

2. to exhale.

respire British  

/ rɪˈspaɪə /

verb

1. to inhale and exhale (air); breathe

2. (intr) to undergo the process of respiration

3. literary to breathe again in a relaxed or easy manner, as after stress or exertion

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Other Word Forms

• prerespire
  verb (used with object)
• unrespired
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of respire

1375–1425; late Middle English respiren < Latin respīrāre, equivalent to re- re- + spīrāre to breathe; see spirit

Explanation

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."

Example Sentences

Respire, rē-spīr′, v.i. to breathe again and again: to breathe: to take rest.—v.t. to breathe out—in the higher animals there is an absorption of oxygen and a discharge of carbonic acid, also in plants.—n.

From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 3 of 4: N-R) by Various