air-breathe

American  

[air-breeth] / ˈɛərˌbrið /

verb (used without object)

air-breathed, air-breathing

1. (of an engine, aircraft, missile, etc.) to take in air from the atmosphere to oxidize the fuel for combustion.

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Etymology

Origin of air-breathe

air ¹ + breathe

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

air-breathing

It’s more difficult to rehabilitate an animal like a sawfish than it is for an air-breathing marine creature, such as a dolphin or manatee, officials say.

From Seattle Times ● Apr. 12, 2024

“The only reason organisms can survive at that depth is because they’re more or less the same density as the water around them, so they don’t get deformed like us air-breathing creatures.”

From Scientific American ● Jun. 20, 2023

Aerojet develops and manufactures liquid and solid rocket propulsion, air-breathing hypersonic engines, and electric power and propulsion for space, defense, civil and commercial applications.

From Reuters ● Jan. 11, 2022

They were pre-equipped with genes that could be turned to making limbs, efficient air-breathing lungs, and nervous systems tuned to the challenges of life on land.

From Science Magazine ● Feb. 10, 2021

Remains of air-breathing insects, myriapods and arachnids show that these forms of life were both well developed and individually numerous.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 3 "Capefigue" to "Carneades" by Various