wheeze
[ hweez, weez ]
/ ʰwiz, wiz /
verb (used without object), wheezed, wheez·ing.
to breathe with difficulty and with a whistling sound: Asthma caused him to wheeze.
to make a sound resembling difficult breathing: The old locomotive wheezed into the station.
noun
a wheezing breath or sound.
an old and frequently used joke, saying, story, etc.
Nearby words
Origin of wheeze
1425–75; late Middle English whese (v.), probably < Old Norse hvæsa to hiss
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for wheeze
wheeze
/ (wiːz) /
verb
to breathe or utter (something) with a rasping or whistling sound
(intr) to make or move with a noise suggestive of wheezy breathing
noun
a husky, rasping, or whistling sound or breathing
British slang a trick, idea, or plan (esp in the phrase good wheeze)
informal a hackneyed joke or anecdote
Word Origin for wheeze
C15: probably from Old Norse hvǣsa to hiss
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
wheeze
mid-15c., probably from a Scandinavian source (cf. Old Norse hvoesa "to hiss," Danish hvæse) cognate with Old English hwæst "act of blowing," hwosan "to cough," from an imitative root. Related: Wheezed; wheezing. The noun is first recorded 1834.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
wheeze
[ wēz ]
v.
To breathe with difficulty, producing a hoarse whistling sound.
n.
A wheezing sound.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
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