inhalation

[in-huh-ley-shuh n]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR inhalation ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

an act or instance of inhaling.

an inhalant.

Origin of inhalation

First recorded in 1615–25; inhale + -ation

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for inhalation

intake, digestion, consumption, saturation, penetration, retention, hint, fume, odor, aroma, breath, puff, scent, gasp, breathing, fusion, ingestion, osmosis, reception, exhaustion

Examples from the Web for inhalation

Contemporary Examples of inhalation

Inhalation anthrax, one of the most difficult to treat, does not carry a definitive time frame.
CDC: 80 May Have Been Exposed to Anthrax
Abby Haglage
June 19, 2014
Underneath my name, in black ballpoint pen, it says: Abd pain; Diff breathing; Inhalation.
How 9/11 Made Journalists Part of the Story
Allison Gilbert
May 18, 2014
It transforms a tight white fist into a gentle brown wave, and from my first inhalation 15 years ago it fumigated my private hell.
There's a Reason That Addicts Say Yes to Drugs
Megan McArdle
March 7, 2013
They like watching lips wrap around the cigarette, the inhalation, and then the blowing of the smoke.
Eight Strange Sex Fetishes
Aurora Snow
December 16, 2010

Historical Examples of inhalation

Inhalation and exhalation should be gradual and natural, not spasmodic.
The Ontario High School Reader
A.E. Marty
With every inhalation he choked, filling his mouth and nostrils more with dust than with air.
The Octopus
Frank Norris
The benefit derived from the inhalation of steam is considerable.
Special Report on Diseases of the Horse
United States Department of Agriculture
Then it occurred to Cheenbuk to apply the power of suction instead of inhalation.
The Walrus Hunters
R.M. Ballantyne
Give ether or chloroform by inhalation, and chloral internally.
Housekeeping in Old Virginia
Marion Cabell Tyree

British Dictionary definitions for inhalation

inhalation

noun

the act of inhaling; breathing in of air or other vapours

an inhalant formulation

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

Word Origin and History for inhalation

1620s, noun of action from past participle stem of Latin inhalare (see inhale).

inhalation in Medicine

inhalation

[ĭn′hə-lā′shən]

n.

The act or an instance of inhaling.

A solution of a drug or a combination of drugs administered to the respiratory passages as a nebulized mist.

inhalation in Science

inhalation

[ĭn′hə-lā′shən]

The act of taking in breath. Inhalation results from the negative pressure in the lungs caused by contraction of the diaphragm, which causes it to move downwards and to expand the chest cavity. The resulting flow of air into the lungs restores a pressure equal to that of the atmosphere. Also called inspiration Compare exhalation.