oxygen debt
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of oxygen debt
First recorded in 1920–25
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.
This relationship suggests the seals may be repaying a lingering oxygen debt accumulated during diving and hunting trips.
From Science Daily • May 9, 2026
Initially it was thought that this energy, which we call “excess postexercise oxygen consumption,” was a replacement for oxygen debt.
From Scientific American • Nov. 24, 2021
They throw themselves over the boards, skate themselves into oxygen debt, then sit down and watch their sweat freeze.
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 13, 2016
Until the oxygen debt has been met, oxygen intake is elevated, even after exercise has stopped.
From Textbooks • Jun. 19, 2013
"I believe it would be an asset for the game because they do get into oxygen debt and then struggle to make good decisions."
From The Guardian • Dec. 2, 2010
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.
