Definition Definition

breathe - Meaning and Examples

Meaning of 'breathe' (Webster Dictionary)

1 . Breathe [ v. i.]
- To respire; to inhale and exhale air; hence;, to live.
- To take breath; to rest from action.
- To pass like breath; noiselessly or gently; to exhale; to emanate; to blow gently.
2 . Breathe [ v. t.]
- To inhale and exhale in the process of respiration; to respire.
- To inject by breathing; to infuse; -- with into.
- To emit or utter by the breath; to utter softly; to whisper; as, to breathe a vow.
- To exhale; to emit, as breath; as, the flowers breathe odors or perfumes.
- To express; to manifest; to give forth.
- To act upon by the breath; to cause to sound by breathing.
- To promote free respiration in; to exercise.
- To suffer to take breath, or recover the natural breathing; to rest; as, to breathe a horse.
- To put out of breath; to exhaust.
- To utter without vocality, as the nonvocal consonants.

Meaning of 'breathe' (Princeton's WordNet)

1 . breathe [ v]
Meaning (1):
- be alive
Example in sentence:
  • Every creature that breathes
Meaning (2):
- impart as if by breathing
Example in sentence:
  • He breathed new life into the old house
Meaning (3):
- draw air into, and expel out of, the lungs
Example in sentence:
  • I can breathe better when the air is clean;
  • The patient is respiring
Meaning (4):
- utter or tell
Example in sentence:
  • not breathe a word
Meaning (5):
- allow the passage of air through
Example in sentence:
  • Our new synthetic fabric breathes and is perfect for summer wear
Meaning (6):
- manifest or evince
Example in sentence:
  • She breathes the Christian spirit
Meaning (7):
- reach full flavor by absorbing air and being let to stand after having been uncorked
Example in sentence:
  • This rare Bordeaux must be allowed to breathe for at least 2 hours