exhale
Americanverb (used without object)
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exhales,
present (3rd person singular)
-
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
-
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
-
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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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:
September is notoriously tough on the stock market, but investors might be able to exhale now that Labor Day is here.
From Barron's ● Sep. 7, 2026
This combination of measurements allowed the researchers to test whether extending the exhale did more than simply lower heart rate.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 4, 2026
More impressively, Melton manages to exhale a puff of smoke so thick that cinematographer Magnus Nordenhof Jønck can still see it through the set’s fog.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 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
He straightened his legs, and as he did, the ladder rose from the water until he saw light breaking the surface, until he felt the air on his face and was finally able to exhale.
From "Zeitoun" by Dave Eggers
After a minute or so he exhales, but not a normal exhale, and then I hear him say something but can’t make it out over the traffic and the rage-triggered ringing in my ears.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026
"Cong phew!" exhales the Sun after "Hero Harry" comes "to the rescue".
From BBC ● Jul. 2, 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
The train shudders to a stop and exhales.
From "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen
No one exhaled until the cargo was unloaded, unswaddled, and confirmed to be in one piece.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 21, 2026
“American Patriarch” is a tonic reminder that, from its very beginnings, our republic has exhaled a whiff of the miraculous.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 22, 2026
She added: "I sobbed for hours and then exhaled for the first time in a year."
From BBC ● May 22, 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
Chickenhound finally exhaled a long sigh of relief.
From "Redwall" by Brian Jacques
He left, not to the sound of euphoria from the fans, but to the sound of a support collectively exhaling in relief.
From BBC ● Sep. 16, 2026
If you think no price is too high for reduced emissions, stop exhaling.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
Worsening osteoporosis in older women may lead to exhaling DMS, as can the positive effects of a medication cocktail for children with cystic fibrosis.
From Salon ● May 31, 2025
This is his cue to begin exhaling, mindful that the amount of air in his lungs will affect the degree to which his body curls and the force he imparts on the snap.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 16, 2024
After a minute of inspection she finally stands, exhaling.
From "Five Feet Apart" by Rachael Lippincott
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