wheeze

American  

[hweez, weez] / ʰwiz, wiz /

verb (used without object)

• wheezes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• wheezed,
  past participle,  past
• wheezing
  present participle

1. to breathe with difficulty and with a whistling sound.

   Asthma caused him to wheeze.

2. to make a sound resembling difficult breathing.

   The old locomotive wheezed into the station.

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noun

• wheezes
  plural

1. a wheezing breath or sound.

2. an old and frequently used joke, saying, story, etc.

wheeze British  

/ wiːz /

verb

1. to breathe or utter (something) with a rasping or whistling sound

2. (intr) to make or move with a noise suggestive of wheezy breathing

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noun

1. a husky, rasping, or whistling sound or breathing

2. slang a trick, idea, or plan (esp in the phrase good wheeze )

3. informal a hackneyed joke or anecdote

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• wheezer
  noun
• wheeziness
  noun
• wheezy
  adjective
• wheezily
  adverb
• wheezingly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• wheezes
  plural

Participles

• wheezing
  present
• wheezed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• wheeze
  simple
• wheezes
  simple
• have wheezed
  perfect
• has wheezed
  perfect
• am wheezing
  progressive
• are wheezing
  progressive
• is wheezing
  progressive
• have been wheezing
  perfect progressive
• has been wheezing
  perfect progressive

Past

• wheezed
  simple
• had wheezed
  perfect
• was wheezing
  progressive
• were wheezing
  progressive
• had been wheezing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will wheeze
  simple
• will have wheezed
  perfect
• will be wheezing
  progressive
• will have been wheezing
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of wheeze

1425–75; late Middle English whese (v.), probably < Old Norse hvæsa to hiss

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Explanation

To breathe in a gasping, strained way is to wheeze. You might not know you're allergic to cats until you walk into the house your friend shares with six felines and start to wheeze. A particular raspy, whistling kind of breathing characterizes a wheeze. You might wheeze because you've got a bad cold, or because your asthma is acting up after that half marathon you just ran. It can be scary to wheeze sometimes, because it feels like you're not getting quite as much air as you need with each breath. Wheeze shares a Scandinavian root with the Old Norse hvoesa, "to hiss."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

wheeze wheezes wheezed wheezing

If this week shows anything, though, this wheeze, like all such wheezes, has finally sown the seeds of its own obsolescence.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 22, 2026

Edi Rama does not deny that there is an element of a publicity stunt to his latest wheeze.

From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2025

But three days into a string of seven-hour rehearsals, her voice collapsed, the high notes so long her hallmark dissolving into a pitchy wheeze.

From New York Times ● May 30, 2024

Preschool asthma/recurrent wheeze is a leading cause of hospital admissions in children and results in poor lung function which persists for decades.

From Science Daily ● Apr. 4, 2024

Breathing is tricky too; I stop trying to be quiet,: and let air wheeze in and out of my lungs.

From "Insurgent" by Veronica Roth

Such wheezes aren’t the most salient feature of the screenplay, though.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026

They communicate through grunts, bellows and wheezes, a form of vocalization that plays a crucial role in the dynamics of the group.

From Salon ● Mar. 22, 2024

Whatever cunning wheezes No 10 conjures up, the hole the Conservatives need to climb out of is very deep.

From BBC ● Sep. 2, 2023

Two and a half years after her infection, Rodríguez can accomplish most daily activities, but she becomes breathless and wheezes when she carries her toddler daughter or does chores such as mopping the floor.

From Seattle Times ● Aug. 28, 2023

Mr. Black wheezes to the front of the room as the bell rings and asks if anyone has questions about the project.

From "All The Bright Places" by Jennifer Niven

Their offense has sputtered and wheezed, even as their defense has done its part to keep them in games.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 3, 2026

But I’m the kind of person who trained for, and wheezed his way through, a cycling tour of Provence with his dad, but who almost never rode to work.

From Slate ● Jun. 18, 2023

Outside a CT scan room, a woman sitting on a bench wheezed as snot dribbled out of her nostrils into crumpled tissues.

From Seattle Times ● Dec. 23, 2022

“I’ve never been that sick,” he wheezed through his thick metal door.

From Washington Post ● Jul. 14, 2022

All Roosevelt could do was stay in bed, propped up on pillows, feeling like he was being strangled as he coughed, wheezed, and gasped for breath.

From "Death on the River of Doubt" by Samantha Seiple

In February 2025, a relative brought Aurora to an emergency room for asthma, wheezing and difficulty breathing.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 14, 2026

Over a wheezing harmonica and lightly strummed guitar, the title character sets out on a journey to avenge the death of her father.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026

"More serious but less common symptoms include wheezing, chest pains or severe cough. If you think you are having a medical emergency, seek immediate medical assistance."

From BBC ● Jul. 15, 2026

If inhaled at high levels, these fumes can aggravate a person’s lungs, causing coughing, wheezing and chest tightness.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 22, 2026

Afterward she might want to lie down and rest, but she can always talk to me and her wheezing always lessens.

From "Clairboyance" by Kristiana Kahakauwila

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Related Words

• cough
• gasp
• hiss
• puff
• snore

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