respiratory
Americanadjective
adjective
Etymology
Origin of respiratory
1780–90; < Late Latin respīrātōrius, equivalent to Latin respīrā ( re ) to respire + -tōrius -tory 1
Explanation
The word respiratory is an adjective describing anything related to respiration: how we breathe. In addition to the nervous, muscular, and skeletal systems, the body has a respiratory system: this is how we get and use oxygen, which we need to survive. The respiratory system also expels carbon dioxide, which we don’t use. The main respiratory organs are the lungs. Asthma and bronchitis are respiratory diseases, because they make breathing difficult. When you see the word respiratory, just take a deep breath and you’ll remember the meaning.
Vocabulary lists containing respiratory
Freak the Mighty
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Life Science: Human Systems
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This Week In Words: February 22–28, 2020
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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.
More patients, including children, have been arriving at A&E departments with flu and other respiratory viruses.
From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026
Plague is a bacterial disease that can occur in several forms, including pneumonic plague, the most contagious type, which can spread through respiratory droplets.
From Barron's ● Oct. 7, 2026
There was a camera rolling, electrodes measuring heart and respiratory rates.
From Salon ● Oct. 4, 2026
Paul Reubens’ immediate cause of death was acute hypoxic respiratory failure, says his death certificate obtained by news outlets.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026
“However, I could not work here. This garage is particularly dank, and I’m susceptible to respiratory ailments among a variety of others.”
From "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole
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.
