exhale
Americanverb (used without object)
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exhales,
present (3rd person singular)
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exhaled,
past participle, past
-
exhaling
present participle
-
to emit breath or vapor; breathe out.
-
to pass off as vapor; pass off as an effluence.
verb (used with object)
-
exhales,
present (3rd person singular)
-
exhaled,
past participle, past
-
exhaling
present participle
-
to breathe out; emit (air, vapor, sound, etc.).
to exhale a sigh.
-
to give off as vapor.
The engine exhaled steam.
-
to draw out as a vapor or effluence; evaporate.
verb
-
to expel (breath, tobacco smoke, etc) from the lungs; breathe out
-
to give off (air, vapour, fumes, etc) or (of air, vapour, etc) to be given off; emanate
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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exhalesimple
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exhalessimple
-
have exhaledperfect
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has exhaledperfect
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am exhalingprogressive
-
are exhalingprogressive
-
is exhalingprogressive
-
have been exhalingperfect progressive
-
has been exhalingperfect progressive
Past
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exhaledsimple
-
had exhaledperfect
-
was exhalingprogressive
-
were exhalingprogressive
-
had been exhalingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of exhale
1350–1400; Middle English exalen < Latin exhālāre, equivalent to ex- ex- 1 + hālāre to breathe
Explanation
When you breathe, you inhale and exhale. In other words, you breathe in and out. When you breathe out, you exhale. If you exhale on a cold winter day, your breath looks like smoke in the frigid air. Yoga classes, with their emphasis on breathing, involve a lot of inhaling and exhaling. When you exhale, your lungs push air out, reducing the carbon dioxide in your body and making room for you to inhale oxygen. The Latin root exhalare combines ex, "out," and halare, "breathe."
Vocabulary lists containing exhale
Power Prefix: ex-
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The Landry News
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Flying to the Moon
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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.
See Examples For:
They lure mosquitoes with carbon dioxide—all vertebrates release the gas with each exhale, so to mosquitoes, it usually signals a meal.
From Slate ● Aug. 4, 2026
Meal two: Something easy, almost offhand This is your midweek exhale.
From Salon ● Apr. 26, 2026
After hugging your relieved family, you’d check your brokerage statement and exhale, figuring that at least nothing had happened to the stock or bond markets.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 1, 2026
Her children sometimes struggle with anxiety at bedtime, and Judd has taught them to breathe using a shorter in-breath and a longer exhale to help calm them.
From BBC ● Mar. 22, 2026
We both log out of our Link, and I exhale, then get up and head out of my room.
From "Warcross" by Marie Lu
"Cong phew!" exhales the Sun after "Hero Harry" comes "to the rescue".
From BBC ● Jul. 2, 2026
When it’s over, Parillo, whose nom de guerre in the competition is Velvet Milkman, exhales.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 13, 2026
Her husband Yitzhak, tense throughout, finally exhales, then explains that the couple will wait a week before choosing a name.
From Barron's ● Apr. 10, 2026
When you whisk that nutty, toffee-adjacent warmth into the mix, especially alongside fruit and a streak of citrus zest, the entire batter exhales.
From Salon ● Dec. 16, 2025
She looks around and exhales in deep disappointment, signs the ticket and takes Dee out the front door without a word to her.
From "Ask the Passengers" by A.S. King
She added: "I sobbed for hours and then exhaled for the first time in a year."
From BBC ● May 22, 2026
Once his win became official, Woodland looked to the sky, exhaled and pushed the brim of his cap down to cover his eyes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 30, 2026
A similar quarantine design had been used in earlier research, along with specialized testing of exhaled breath developed by Milton and his colleagues.
From Science Daily ● Jan. 11, 2026
USC exhaled — and proceeded to finish the first quarter on a 16-0 run.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 7, 2026
I exhaled, my relief so palpable that it caused Barack to laugh.
From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama
If you think no price is too high for reduced emissions, stop exhaling.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
By late afternoon, most test-takers walk out of school gates, exhaling with relief and embracing the family members waiting outside.
From BBC ● Nov. 12, 2025
“I pulled almost an all-nighter last night, so he’s been keeping us up,” he said, exhaling a light chuckle.
From Salon ● Sep. 30, 2025
“He’ll probably start,” Roberts said, exhaling after a wild night.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2024
I lean down to his face and see that he's inhaling and exhaling these disgusting bubbly strands of snot from the last throes of his cryathon.
From "Will Grayson, Will Grayson" by John Green and David Levithan
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.
