breathless
without breath or breathing with difficulty; gasping; panting: We were breathless after the steep climb.
with the breath held, as in suspense, astonishment, fear, or the like: breathless listeners of the mystery story.
causing loss of breath, as from excitement, anticipation, or tension: a breathless ride.
dead; lifeless.
motionless or still, as air without a breeze: a breathless summer day.
Origin of breathless
1Other words from breathless
- breath·less·ly, adverb
- breath·less·ness, noun
Words Nearby breathless
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use breathless in a sentence
The page on soup alone contains over 70,000 words from primary sources, cataloged in breathless detail.
The Internet’s Most Incredible Collection of Food History Has Been Saved | Dayna Evans | January 12, 2021 | EaterThe sudden acknowledgement that a person you once loved doesn’t exist anymore can knock the wind out of you, and Dunne captures that breathless free fall beautifully.
In Herself, a Young Dublin Mother Builds a House to Find Her Way Home | Stephanie Zacharek | January 8, 2021 | TimeIt leaves the reader breathless, a deliberate choice by this onetime copy editor, who wants to rush through these excruciating episodes yet convey in lyrical fashion what he feels.
Daniel Menaker, author and celebrated editor at the New Yorker and Random House, dies at 79 | Harrison Smith | October 29, 2020 | Washington PostYou might think that Beijing would be desperate to get a break from this breathless aggression.
Any US election outcome is more win-win than lose-lose for China | Jane Li | October 27, 2020 | QuartzAlthough he and Bonet divorced in 1993, social media erupted with breathless praise for this glorious vision of a blended family and wild speculation about the magic of Bonet.
Lenny Kravitz Opens Up About His Mom Roxie Roker And His First Love Lisa Bonet | cmurray | October 6, 2020 | Essence.com
Suddenly, you are crying, breathless, raging, and on quieter days just going through the motions.
Whether it's breathless coverage of the New Black Panthers, or reports of vote buying in Mississippi, recent examples abound.
Brace Yourself: October Election Surprises Surely on the Way | Matt Lewis | October 31, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTAt his shows, I remember there being a hushed, breathless anticipation as we waited to see which song Smith would play next.
‘Heaven Adores You’ Is More Celebratory Than Salacious About Elliott Smith | Rachel Kramer Bussel | June 22, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe community in which you were raised does not gather around the television set every four years for a solid, breathless month.
After a breathless waiting period in which the infected were quarantined, none of the six fell ill.
Already Deadly in Africa, Could Ebola Hit America Next? | Scott Bixby | April 5, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTAgain he stopped, but I made no comment, only waited with breathless interest till he went on.
Uncanny Tales | VariousPhœbe Chiffinch, breathless, is holding Alice Arden's wrist with a firm grasp.
Checkmate | Joseph Sheridan Le FanuWalter Fetherston was a writer of breathless mystery—but he was the essence of mystery himself.
The Doctor of Pimlico | William Le QueuxIn the privacy of Lawrence's room, Carl told his story—a story that Lawrence listened to breathless attention.
The Courier of the Ozarks | Byron A. DunnLight gleamed on the staircase, and breathless voices were wafted up to the two men.
St. Martin's Summer | Rafael Sabatini
British Dictionary definitions for breathless
/ (ˈbrɛθlɪs) /
out of breath; gasping, etc
holding one's breath or having it taken away by excitement, etc: a breathless confrontation
(esp of the atmosphere) motionless and stifling
rare lifeless; dead
Derived forms of breathless
- breathlessly, adverb
- breathlessness, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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