dry heaves

American  

[drahy heevz] / ˈdraɪ ˈhivz /

plural noun

1. Often the dry heaves a condition in which one feels the need to vomit and repeatedly attempts to do so, but without bringing anything up.

   He was nauseous before breakfast, had a round of dry heaves, and decided not to eat till he felt better.

   I get the dry heaves when I smell buttered popcorn.

---

Etymology

Origin of dry heaves

First recorded in 1915–20

Example Sentences

There was that time at Bay Hill in 2003 when Woods had food poisoning, had the dry heaves throughout the final round and won by 11 shots.

From Seattle Times • Dec. 20, 2022

The vertigo, which she described as “horrendous,” was accompanied by dry heaves and an inability to focus her eyes.

From Washington Post • Dec. 10, 2021

"The vertigo was pretty much all the time, but if we had a lot of noise, the dry heaves would be more often," Luann Therrien said.

From US News • Oct. 12, 2016

When it was over, Kat developed aspiration pneumonia and had vomiting and dry heaves for days, normal reactions to anesthesia, narcotics and antibiotics, but Dr. McGinn said Kat was hit harder than most.

From New York Times • Jun. 16, 2015

Then she bolted awake and gagged again, and after a few dry heaves, she finally crawled forward, away from the mess, and curled into a ball.

From "Tradition" by Brendan Kiely