respire

American  

[ri-spahyuhr] / rɪˈspaɪər /

verb (used without object)

respired, respiring

1. to inhale and exhale air for the purpose of maintaining life; breathe.

2. to breathe freely again, after anxiety, trouble, etc.

---

verb (used with object)

respired, respiring

1. to breathe; inhale and exhale.

2. to exhale.

respire British  

/ rɪˈspaɪə /

verb

1. to inhale and exhale (air); breathe

2. (intr) to undergo the process of respiration

3. literary to breathe again in a relaxed or easy manner, as after stress or exertion

---

Other Word Forms

• prerespire verb (used with object)
• unrespired adjective

Etymology

Origin of respire

1375–1425; late Middle English respiren < Latin respīrāre, equivalent to re- re- + spīrāre to breathe; spirit

Explanation

To respire is to breathe in and out. After a calf is born, a farmer might watch it respire for a while to make sure it's okay. While you can use the verb respire simply to mean "breathe," it's most often used in a medical or scientific context. A nurse might worry about the rate at which a patient respires, and a biologist might discuss the way a plant respires at night, when light doesn't reach its leaves. The Latin root, respirare, means "breathe again" or "breathe in and out," from re-, "again," and spirare, "to breathe."

Example Sentences

Tiny pores on a leaf’s underside are arranged to take in carbon dioxide and respire water, allowing the plant to transform sunlight into energy.

From Seattle Times • Aug. 23, 2021

On average, pregnant women suffer twice as many bites, as they respire 20% more carbon dioxide, and have a marginally elevated body temperature.

From The Guardian • Sep. 20, 2019

Some land invertebrates, such as earthworms, live in moist environments and can respire across their skin if it stays moist.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2018

But at night, plants and animals respire and take away too much oxygen, said the study’s lead author, Denise Breitburg, a marine ecologist at SERC.

From Washington Post • Feb. 11, 2015

The usual way of looking at them is as enslaved creatures, captured to supply ATP for cells unable to respire on their own, or to provide carbohydrate and oxygen for cells unequipped for photosynthesis.

From "The Lives of a Cell" by Lewis Thomas