wheeze

American  

[hweez, weez] / ʰwiz, wiz /

verb (used without object)

wheezed, wheezing

1. to breathe with difficulty and with a whistling sound.

   Asthma caused him to wheeze.

2. to make a sound resembling difficult breathing.

   The old locomotive wheezed into the station.

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noun

1. a wheezing breath or sound.

2. an old and frequently used joke, saying, story, etc.

wheeze British  

/ wiːz /

verb

1. to breathe or utter (something) with a rasping or whistling sound

2. (intr) to make or move with a noise suggestive of wheezy breathing

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noun

1. a husky, rasping, or whistling sound or breathing

2. slang a trick, idea, or plan (esp in the phrase good wheeze )

3. informal a hackneyed joke or anecdote

Other Word Forms

• wheezer noun
• wheezily adverb
• wheeziness noun
• wheezingly adverb
• wheezy adjective

Etymology

Origin of wheeze

1425–75; late Middle English whese (v.), probably < Old Norse hvæsa to hiss

Example Sentences

After 28 days, respiratory symptoms of cough, wheeze, breathlessness and sputum were found to be better with benralizumab.

From Science Daily • Nov. 27, 2024

Alesya’s dog really does wheeze when it walks.

From BBC • Aug. 3, 2024

But three days into a string of seven-hour rehearsals, her voice collapsed, the high notes so long her hallmark dissolving into a pitchy wheeze.

From New York Times • May 30, 2024

“This repertoire — with its contrapuntal extravaganzas, its antiphonal balances, its espousal of instruments that chuff and wheeze and speak directly to a microphone — was made for stereo,” he wrote.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2024

So they wheeze along, out-of-date and sometimes counterproductive, but a necessary consequence of our evolution.

From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan

Related Words

• cough
• gasp
• hiss
• puff
• snore