heaving
Americanadjective
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rising and falling rhythmically or with a swelling motion, as ocean waves or the chest of someone breathing.
He ran down the slippery gangway to the heaving deck of the steamer.
-
characterized by surging or pulsing movement, as of a mass of people or vehicles.
When the opening chords of the song rang out, there was a stampede into the heaving mosh pit.
She discovered that even in a heaving metropolis it is possible to live in symbiosis with nature.
-
(of breathing, a sigh, etc.) performed with effort.
He felt dizzy from the quick, heaving breaths he was drawing.
She let out a heaving sigh and let the wrench clang to the floor.
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rising as if thrust up by some force; swelling or bulging.
Emergency repairs are required on I-95 due to heaving asphalt caused by years of freezing and thawing.
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vomiting or throwing up.
Whenever someone mentions motion sickness, I remember that three-hour car trip to Grandma's with a heaving child in the backseat.
noun
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the act of rising as if thrust up by some force, or of rising and falling with a rhythmic swelling motion.
The only motion was the heaving of their chests as they stood still for a minute, catching their breath.
The heaving of sidewalks by tree roots often results when the planting strip is too narrow to accommodate the trees.
-
the act of performing a sigh, breath, etc., with effort.
It’s easy to be sympathetic when it costs no more than the shedding of a few tears, the heaving of a sigh, or the uttering of a soft word.
-
the act of lifting or throwing something with effort or force.
The heaving of garbage at a criminal in the stocks was common—and sometimes fatal.
His leadership was marked by a constant heaving of himself into the foremost position in every situation.
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the act of vomiting or throwing up.
My numerous trips to the open bar were followed by some unfortunate heaving into a bucket.
Etymology
Origin of heaving
First recorded in 1575–85; heave ( def. ) + -ing 2 ( def. ) for the adjective senses; heave ( def. ) + -ing 1 ( def. ) for the noun senses
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.
International rescue teams and frantic families are in a race against time, heaving debris aside in a desperate bid to find the last survivors.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 28, 2026
And it wasn’t lost on Rove that the spindly, excitable man narrating that story for them in a thick Hungarian accent “was once a 16-year-old picking up paving blocks and heaving them at Soviet tanks.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 12, 2026
Archer heaving a couple of sixes was the inspiration for Root to whip out his trademark - a reverse-scoop off Boland for a maximum.
From BBC ● Dec. 4, 2025
Then Brooks shifts into the light thriller she’s teased since the opening notes of heaving, scratchy violins.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2025
I did; whereupon began a heaving, stamping, clattering process, accompanied by a barking and baying which removed me effectually some yards’ distance; but I would not be driven quite away till I saw the event.
From "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Brontë
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.
