cough

American  

[kawf, kof] / kɔf, kɒf /

verb (used without object)

• coughs,
  present (3rd person singular)
• coughed,
  past participle,  past
• coughing
  present participle

1. to expel air from the lungs suddenly with a harsh noise, often involuntarily.

2. (of an internal-combustion engine) to make a similar noise as a result of the failure of one or more cylinders to fire in sequence.

3. to make a similar sound, as a machine gun firing in spurts.

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verb (used with object)

• coughs,
  present (3rd person singular)
• coughed,
  past participle,  past
• coughing
  present participle

1. to expel by coughing (usually followed by up orout ).

   to cough up phlegm.

noun

• coughs
  plural

1. the act or sound of coughing.

2. an illness characterized by frequent coughing.

3. a sound similar to a cough, a machine gun, or an engine firing improperly.

verb phrase

1. cough up

   1. to relinquish, especially reluctantly; contribute; give.

   2. to blurt out; state, as by way of making a confession.

      After several hours of vigorous questioning by the police, he finally coughed up the information.

cough British  

/ kɒf /

verb

1. (intr) to expel air or solid matter from the lungs abruptly and explosively through the partially closed vocal chords

2. (intr) to make a sound similar to this

3. (tr) to utter or express with a cough or coughs

4. slang (intr) to confess to a crime

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noun

1. an act, instance, or sound of coughing

2. a condition of the lungs or throat that causes frequent coughing

cough Scientific  

/ kôf,kŏf /

1. The act of expelling air from the lungs suddenly and noisily, often to keep the respiratory passages free of irritating material.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• cougher
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• coughs
  plural

Participles

• coughing
  present
• coughed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• cough
  simple
• coughs
  simple
• have coughed
  perfect
• has coughed
  perfect
• am coughing
  progressive
• are coughing
  progressive
• is coughing
  progressive
• have been coughing
  perfect progressive
• has been coughing
  perfect progressive

Past

• coughed
  simple
• had coughed
  perfect
• was coughing
  progressive
• were coughing
  progressive
• had been coughing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will cough
  simple
• will have coughed
  perfect
• will be coughing
  progressive
• will have been coughing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of cough

1275–1325; Middle English coghen, apparently < Old English *cohhian (compare its derivative cohhettan to cough); akin to Dutch kuchen to cough, German keuchen to wheeze

Explanation

A cough is a reflex in which your throat or lungs are cleared by a sudden, sharp burst of air escaping. A bad cough can make it very hard to sleep at night. A cough is evidence that someone's sick, and it's a verb as well: "She began to cough and couldn't stop until someone brought her a bottle of water." You can also describe a cough-like sound that an engine makes when it's not working properly as a cough. The Old English source of cough is coughen, from a Germanic root — every version of the word is imitative, the word itself sounding like a cough.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

cough coughs coughed coughing

When Xiaomei wanted to buy the cough suppressant, it just took a few clicks for an entire box of the medication to be delivered at her door, she says.

From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026

Hundreds of Boyle Heights residents suffered health problems after a fire at a cold storage facility burned stubbornly for days, including respiratory infections, eye disorders and persistent cough, according to a new study.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 20, 2026

Sustained demand signals to airlines that passengers are willing to cough up the extra cash to secure a seat, said Peter Vlitas, executive vice president of partner relations for international travel brand Internova Travel Group.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 12, 2026

Net profit in the April-June period slumped 70 percent to £435 million compared with the 2025 second quarter after the company abandoned a chronic cough treatment, GSK said in an earnings statement.

From Barron's ● Jul. 28, 2026

Mrs. Krajewska and her SS nephew will not think that cough is mine.

From "The Light in Hidden Places" by Sharon Cameron

The measles spreads easily through the air when an infected person breathes, talks, coughs or sneezes.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026

It had the power to soothe the roughest of sore throats and quiet the phlegmiest of coughs.

From Salon ● Jul. 19, 2026

In an actual courtroom, court reporters record nonverbal cues like gestures and transcribe through distracting courtroom noises like coughs or door slams.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 13, 2026

Highly contagious, measles spreads quickly through coughs and sneezes and is particularly dangerous for unvaccinated young children under the age of 5.

From BBC ● May 27, 2026

“Thank you, Nathan, for everything you have done for me,” said Pond through raspy coughs and body-shaking dry heaves.

From "Healer of the Water Monster" by Brian Young

But on Tuesday, left-hander Eric Lauer coughed up seven runs in three innings.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026

Around 20,000 years ago, a cave was home to generations of owls that regularly coughed up pellets containing the bones of their prey.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 5, 2026

She showed little emotion as the Argentine condemned her to a 6-0 scoreline in the opening set, and rather than voicing her frustration, she coughed in between points.

From BBC ● May 24, 2026

Last month, it coughed up a crucial game to Manchester City and briefly lost its grip on the title race—despite once holding a nine-point lead.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 20, 2026

“Ahem!” coughed Aunt Carrol softly, with a look at Aunt March.

From "Little Women" by Louisa May Alcott

And he’s just coughing so hard it just makes you feel short of breath.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026

"I felt very ill because I have asthma. I started coughing and I threw up," she told AFP at a gymnasium in the northern Madrid suburb of Alcobendas.

From Barron's ● Jul. 25, 2026

Since March, government figures show nearly 750 people, mostly children, have died from the highly contagious disease, which spreads easily through breathing, coughing or sneezing.

From BBC ● Jul. 8, 2026

They will watch the death toll rapidly rise one afternoon and be the first to make reservations for socially distanced indoor dining the very same evening, coughing the whole time.

From Salon ● Jun. 13, 2026

She watched the domovoi shoving the goats into a messy herd while Babulya stood nearby with her shawl clutched around her shoulders and Kin sitting at her feet, coughing.

From Anya and the Dragon by Sofiya Pasternack

Related Words

• bark
• choke
• hack
• vomit
• whoop