breathing
Americannoun
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the act of a person or other animal that breathes; respiration.
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a single breath.
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the short time required for a single breath.
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a pause, as for breath.
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utterance or words.
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a gentle moving or blowing, as of wind.
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Classical Greek Grammar.
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the manner of articulating the beginning of a word written with an initial vowel sign, with or without aspiration before the vowel.
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one of the two symbols used to indicate this.
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noun
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the passage of air into and out of the lungs to supply the body with oxygen
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a single breath
a breathing between words
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an utterance
a breathing of hate
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a soft movement, esp of air
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a rest or pause
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phonetics
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expulsion of breath ( rough breathing ) or absence of such expulsion ( smooth breathing ) preceding the pronunciation of an initial vowel or rho in ancient Greek
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either of two symbols indicating this
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Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of breathing
First recorded in 1350–1400, breathing is from the Middle English word brethynge. See breathe, -ing 1
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.
Known as Breathing Space, the service gives people temporary protection for up to 60 days from creditors and offers debt advice to help manage payments in the future.
From BBC • Apr. 20, 2026
Breathing isn’t just a pause — it’s a boundary.
From Salon • Nov. 22, 2025
Breathing in secondhand smoke in prison is “inhuman and degrading treatment” if the judges say so, while not being allowed to produce secondhand smoke is a violation of the “right to private life.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 7, 2025
Breathing patterns and emotional state are difficult to untangle -- if anxiety increases or decreases, so does the breathing rate.
From Science Daily • Nov. 19, 2024
Breathing and lying down were about all she could manage.
From "Artemis Fowl" by Eoin Colfer
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
