stertorous

[stur-ter-uh s]

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adjective

characterized by stertor or heavy snoring.

breathing in this manner.

Origin of stertorous

First recorded in 1795–1805; stertor + -ous

Related formsster·to·rous·ly, adverbster·to·rous·ness, nounpost·ster·to·rous, adjective

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

Related Words for stertorous

discordant, loud, strident, harsh, vociferous, blatant, jarring, raucous, throaty, gruff, gravelly, acute, brusque, cacophonous, dissonant, dry, grating, grinding, hoarse, husky

Examples from the Web for stertorous

Historical Examples of stertorous

There was something ominous about the spasmodic and stertorous breathing.
Joan of Arc of the North Woods
Holman Day
With that enigmatical comment he was silent save for stertorous breathing.
Desert Dust
Edwin L. Sabin
He seemed in a profound stupor, but there was no stertorous breathing.
Ladies-In-Waiting
Kate Douglas Wiggin
The only sound was the stertorous breathing of the unconscious guard.
Gold in the Sky
Alan Edward Nourse
Anne shook him, but he did not awake, his breathing being slow and stertorous.
The Trumpet-Major
Thomas Hardy

British Dictionary definitions for stertorous

stertorous

adjective

marked or accompanied by heavy snoring

breathing in this way

Derived Formsstertorously, adverbstertorousness, noun

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 stertorous

adj.

1802, from Modern Latin stertor (from Latin stertere "to snore") + -ous.