noun
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES
a breath of air
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I went outside for a breath of air.
a breath test (= to find out if someone has drunk alcohol )
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Some people think the police should be able to carry out random breath tests.
breath test
deep breath
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She stopped and took a deep breath .
gasp for air/breath
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Brendan climbed slowly, gasping for breath.
muttered under...breath
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‘He’s such an unpleasant man,’ Alyssia muttered under her breath .
panting for breath
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He was panting for breath .
pause for breath
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She had to pause for breath after every two or three steps.
puffing for breath
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He caught up with Gary, puffing for breath .
wait with bated breath (= while feeling very anxious or excited )
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She waited with bated breath to see what he would say.
waited...with bated breath
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He waited for a reply to his offer with bated breath .
COLLOCATIONS FROM CORPUS
■ ADJECTIVE
bad
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Bill Muggeridge opened his mouth to say something, but happily only bad breath came out.
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The mouth of the face had bad breath .
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Warning: Moderate consumption of this product is likely to cause pronounced belching and bad breath .
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Despite suggestions that he should bathe every day, he still suffers from smelly feet and bad breath .
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Warning: Eaten in sufficient amounts, this product ensures bad breath , probable indigestion and pungent, loose stools.
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Why didn't they tell us which EastEnder had such bad breath her screen husband couldn't bear kissing her?
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Kids talk candidly and loudly about their Santa experience, and are quick to point out body odor and bad breath .
bated
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From July onwards the town of Whaddon had waited with bated breath .
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Neither Bradford nor Birmingham regrets entering the tourist trade - the industry waits with bated breath to see how Swindon fares.
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I was waiting with bated breath for him to say something, anything, that wasn't a cliche.
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So now I wait with bated breath .
deep
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She took a deep breath and rang the bell at the parson's house.
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I stuck my head out of the window and took deep breaths of the fragrant air.
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She took a deep breath , then walked reluctantly to the massive door and rang the bell.
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When my turn comes I take a deep breath and plunge in.
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When he heard the deep intake of breath , Joe related.
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I shut my eyes, extend my arms to their fullest, and take a deep breath .
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Blood matted the blond hair, and Lindsey took a deep breath as she leaned closer to peer at the wound.
hot
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Cardiff could feel hot breath on his leg, and knew that the Peters thing wanted to bite him.
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She cupped the raw winter air in her hands and blew hot breath into her palms.
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I n the United States the hot breath of corruption is misting up the mirror of democratic politics.
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He could almost feel hot , fetid breath warming his skin.
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The first whispering breeze came like a hot breath and Wexford closed his windows.
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His patchy mongrel pants like an iris where shamrock fans forget to blur. Hot breath of August.
indrawn
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She heard the indrawn breath hiss sharply through his teeth, and felt the wave of emotion that washed over him.
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There was a brief silence like an indrawn breath .
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She couldn't prevent her tiny indrawn breath .
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From somewhere in the darkness, Sophie made little, stricken noises, all on an indrawn breath .
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He could hear her sharply indrawn breath , the effort it took not to comment.
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She started, her indrawn breath a soft hiss.
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Each indrawn breath was a little throaty snore.
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Her head shot round, her shocked gasp mingling with the audible hiss of sharply indrawn breath .
long
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Rostov drew a long shuddering breath .
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Joe exhales a long breath and sneaks another look at the clock: 1: 58.
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The T'ang gave a gentle laugh, delighted, and took a long , deep breath .
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He took in a long breath , held it and squeezed the handle of the cutters.
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Feeling it should be Michele who recovered it, Luce drew a long , steadying breath and turned to climb down.
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As soon as the train started, I drew a long breath of relief.
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So innocent a scent, and yet ... Shivering, he took a long , slow breath of her.
sharp
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Suddenly, remembering Shaaban's fear - and the man had courage enough - Claudel drew a sharp breath .
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There was a sharp intake of breath .
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She heard him take a quick, sharp breath .
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Then, with a sharp hiss of breath , he brought the sword down sharply.
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I force her skinny little arms into the position I need and ignore the sharp intake of breath .
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He drew in a sharp breath , his stooped shoulders almost straightening.
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Crystal iced spires in twinkling reflection, Sharp intake of breath at such perfection.
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There was a sharp intake of breath behind him, and there she stood in the doorway looking at him.
short
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She went low again, behind Siang, taking a short breath before turning and kicking upward.
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Half-dressed and short of breath , they lay side by side resentful of one another and the skylight above them.
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He is not a large man, but portly now and rather short of breath .
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He fairly sprinted up the stairs, and scarcely paused at the top although clearly short of breath .
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She was also short of breath , and her whole face was beginning to swell.
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As adults our abdomens get tightened up from stress, and we get used to taking very short , shallow breaths .
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The stench of damp that enveloped her was noxious; she tried to take short breaths .
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It took away my breath until I took little, short breaths like gasps.
warm
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She tensed; very softy he blew into her ear, until she quivered as his warm breath passed through her.
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I am more likely to sense their warm breath than their lips.
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And answer: warm flutter of breath .
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That his warm breath on her face churned up her insides to such an extent that she was forced to lie rigid?
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Paul D blew warm breath into the hollow of his cupped hands.
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She felt the warm breath from his wild beast's mouth softly, against her cheek.
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I stroked his lovely velvety pelt and smelt his warm meaty breath .
■ NOUN
back
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Suddenly he noticed how pale I was, and stopped for a moment to let me get my breath back .
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Grabbing at the Zodiac's tow line, he held himself against the river for a moment, getting his breath back .
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She claimed she must get her breath back .
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Just the place to get your breath back .
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When he got his breath back she kissed him.
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The buoy shielded her from the view of the guards, and she used that advantage to get her breath back .
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I locked the shed again and jogged as far as the bridge while I got my breath back .
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I am starting to puff a bit now so I stop behind a Ford Capri and try to get my breath back .
test
▪
Instead he admitted lesser motoring offences including drink-driving, failing to give a breath test and not stopping after an accident.
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Police stopped Kelly, of Chelmsford, and a breath test showed him to be more than twice the legal alcohol limit.
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Pritchard failed a roadside breath test which recorded 151 micrograms of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath.
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Mr Warren was arrested in Mayfair, London, in May 1990 after a roadside breath test proved positive.
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In healthy volunteers, H pylori state was determined by the C urea breath test .
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Police kept her locked up in a cell until she gave a negative breath test and was deemed fit to leave.
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Police said the driver, who lives nearby with his grandmother, had failed a roadside breath test .
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One month after completing this treatment, the C-urea breath test was repeated to assess eradication of the infection.
■ VERB
breathe
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Houses white as virgins breathed their stony breaths and expanded their bellies until every polished name-plaque turned to the sun and shone.
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After a few seconds, he heard them breathing - one breath long and light, the other slightly shorter and huskier.
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The company breathed out with one breath , and crossed themselves.
catch
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It made her catch her breath .
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Then I began to catch my breath a little bit.
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She could hear Moxie catching her breath .
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I caught my breath , releasing the lock.
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Crooking a finger, she tapped experimentally, and caught her breath .
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It took 10 minutes to catch my breath .
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Polly caught her breath , instinctively jerking backwards away from him.
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Holliday said he rushed outdoors to check out downtown's fragile, historic buildings after he caught his breath .
draw
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He persevered silently while the music played, and drew a deep breath when it ended.
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Miss Sadie drew a deep breath .
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Bella drew her breath in sharply, almost beside herself with rage.
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Loucks drew a breath , still peering at me, wondering perhaps how good a student I might be.
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She drew a deep breath , then went out to keep her appointment.
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Caroline took the chance to draw some calming deep breaths , get her scattered emotions under control.
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But it was Mary whose bold appearance drew the breath and the admiration of all of them.
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Abruptly, she drew in her breath .
feel
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Holding her tightly, he could feel her breath coming quicker from her fear.
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Ezra could feel the breath of the girl behind him.
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I felt their breaths at the window.-And the rivers too come down from the hills.
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I felt her breath and almost closed my hand, it tickled so.
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Cardiff could feel hot breath on his leg, and knew that the Peters thing wanted to bite him.
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Sometimes, at the intersections, she comes so close that I can feel her breath on the back of my neck.
fight
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I will fight to my last breath .
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I wad tired of fighting for breath .
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The illness causes the sufferer to fight for every breath when they're having an attack.
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His face was set in a painful rictus, his chest heaving as he fought for breath .
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Half way up she paused, fighting for breath , suddenly struck by the enormity of what she was doing.
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Agnes leaned against the castle wall, which was streaming with water, and fought for breath .
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None of the usual muck one finds in the lungs when a man's fighting for his breath .
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Theda held her while she fought for breath , taking in great gasps of air.
gasp
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Sobbing, gasping for breath , she began to crawl across the floor.
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They gasped for breath , struggled against debilitating weakness, and when the blood vessels around their brains ruptured, they died.
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Yet even as the boy fell back, gasping for breath , that strange transformation overcame him again.
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I will be gasping for breath 24 hours a day.
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Katze dashed on to the bridge of the Raubvogel, gasping for breath .
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We gasped for breath and fought off the pain, desperate not to lose.
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The knowledge left her shaken, gasping for breath .
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I pulled up at the bottom of the course, leaned on my poles and gasped for breath .
hear
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She could hear Moxie catching her breath .
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Next to her right ear she could hear his breath , a shallow snuffle.
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Presently, he heard the breath whistle in her throat, a gasp, a tiny groan.
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He could hear her sharply indrawn breath , the effort it took not to comment.
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When I could hear his panting breath as well as the heavy feet I knew I'd let him get too close.
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She heard their hissing breaths , and the hard, sharp noise of their hooves on the polished floorboards.
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There was a note of urgency in his tone and she could hear his breath .
hold
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She crouched down, holding her breath , and peered in the direction of the sound.
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I can hold my breath longer than any of my upgrades have lasted.
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I stopped to listen, holding my breath .
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His mouth gaped as he held his breath .
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As the others crossed their fingers and held their breath , he gently eased away the back plate.
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We held our breaths , covering our nostrils and mouths with our hands.
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She held her breath as their lips met, but this one was gentle and affectionate, like a brother and sister.
let
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Suddenly he noticed how pale I was, and stopped for a moment to let me get my breath back.
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He let out his breath , and sat down on the stool by the telephone.
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She finished taping him up and let him catch his breath while she reloaded the gun.
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They could let their breaths out now.
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It was like letting your breath out slowly, it took him far away from himself.
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Mitchell let out his breath and stood up, worried about what would happen next.
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He let out a long-held breath .
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Rather let the breath of new life be breathed by you through the forms already existing.
mutter
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Greatly relieved, he muttered under his breath and crossed himself several times.
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He muttered something beneath his breath about the blessings of the blind.
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She was darting back and forth across the clutter on the floor, tweaking cords and muttering beneath her breath .
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Sheridan muttered under his breath several times, making the people he was sitting with uncomfortable.
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He was ill-washed and stubble-chinned and he muttered beneath his breath .
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But the Tarvarian only muttered something under his breath , and spat left and right.
pause
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She paused for breath and found her hand on the grey standing stone.
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He stops, pausing for breath .
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At the top of the cliff we paused to catch our breath and look around.
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They would pause for breath , swear, and then come together again, their fists up, moving in.
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We clung together, breathless, until we had to pause for breath .
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Then, without pausing for breath or breaking her stride, she pushed open the door of his private office.
save
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You can save your breath , Fiver.
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Your cheeks bulge with your last saved breath .
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She might as well have saved her breath .
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He might as well have saved his breath - a sea of green benches confronted the Ulster members.
stop
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Dorcas hurried back and climbed, with a lot of stopping for breath , up to the plank.
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Mrs Stillman stopped to catch her breath .
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When he was climbing the far side of the valley, he stopped for breath , and something made him turn round.
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He stops , pausing for breath .
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He could see Georgiades stop to catch his breath .
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What was it that could stop my breath , my heart, and be the last part of me to die?
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They hurt brutally, stopping every breath from being drawn.
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The watches were stopped and everyone held breath as the timekeepers turned for consultation with the track referee.
suck
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I sucked on breath mints, rubbed deodorant under my arms and on my feet.
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Chesarynth sucked in another breath of the sweet, tangy air and melted into the crowd, shuffling inside with the rest.
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As he sucked in his breath , the hand covering her mouth fell.
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Bernice sucked in a deep breath , searching for a tell-tale smell - and there it was!
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The waiting crowd of marchers groaned and sucked in their breath in sympathetic pain at every blow.
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He sucked in a deep breath .
take
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Once escaped, she took a few deep breaths .
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Then I took my deep breath and went down.
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Maidstone paused and took a deep breath .
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How, one marveled, can any trumpeter deliver so much music and take so few breaths ?
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Some of it was charmingly primitive, some of it so exotically painted it took your breath away.
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The men blinked as the door slammed; then a few cleared their throats guiltily and dared take a breath .
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She takes a deep breath , but doesn't use it.
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I went up to the bed, took a deep breath , and turned the covering back.
turn
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She went low again, behind Siang, taking a short breath before turning and kicking upward.
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I went up to the bed, took a deep breath , and turned the covering back.
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Then, almost in the same breath , he turned on his heel and strode out of the room without another word.
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Cursing Paul under her breath Erika turned .
wait
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From July onwards the town of Whaddon had waited with bated breath .
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Neither Bradford nor Birmingham regrets entering the tourist trade - the industry waits with bated breath to see how Swindon fares.
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I waited to get my breath before cutting across the road.
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I was waiting with bated breath for him to say something, anything, that wasn't a cliche.
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He didn't even wait to catch his breath .
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The valley seemed to be waiting , holding its breath in anticipation of some terrible event.
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It could be felt that some one within the house was waiting with held breath and beating heart.
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So now I wait with bated breath .
waste
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You know it and so do I. So don't waste your breath !
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Was there any point in even wasting her breath trying to convince him?
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Besides, something told her she'd be wasting her breath .
PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
be short of breath
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He sleeps badly and is short of breath on exertion.
breathe your last (breath)
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Five hours more and she'd breathe her last and never know them.
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In the blue light of the morning he breathed his last.
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Large-scale, publicly-owned enterprises will breathe their last gasp and wither away well before the state which spawned them.
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Millions who were dangerously ill or breathing their last.
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The moment Carey was confident that Elizabeth had breathed her last he was in the saddle, racing for the Border.
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When it looked as though he was breathing his last, Beria's face shone with delight.
catch your breath
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And then history paused, just to catch its breath.
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Both waders immediately filled and I caught my breath as freezing April waters began to stimulate sensitive nether regions.
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Busacher slumped into the passenger seat and sat catching his breath.
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I said, falling on to a chair, trying to catch my breath.
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She caught her breath in fear, holding it until the answer came.
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She could hear Moxie catching her breath.
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The slow movement of this performance is particularly fine, with pianissimos that have you catching your breath.
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Tokyo stocks fell Monday as investors caught their breath following a strong advance over the two previous sessions.
draw breath
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Given unexpected control of his lungs, he spluttered and drew breaths until his body took over.
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He drew breath hard, and stepped out from his shallow niche and stood in the centre of the walk.
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In a minute, she would dare draw breath again.
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It must be impossible to stand up against it, he wrote, impossible to draw breath before it.
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Lady Thatcher never drew breath, while John Major was a good listener.
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She drew breath for the first time in three and a quarter hours.
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She flipped through the catalogue and drew breath time and again.
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She fought the futile urge to draw breath.
hold your breath
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It stinks so bad you have to hold your breath until you come out.
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Patrice held her breath, waiting for Lettie's reply.
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Rachel held her breath as she waited for his answer.
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The art world will be holding its breath to see how much these paintings sell for at auction.
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An anxious nation holds its breath.
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Benjy rang the doorbell, then held his breath, waiting.
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He discovered that he was holding his breath, and gulped for air.
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It gave her the feeling that the whole world was holding its breath.
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She held her breath on another quick dart of guilt.
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We held our breaths, covering our nostrils and mouths with our hands.
indrawn breath
▪
From somewhere in the darkness, Sophie made little, stricken noises, all on an indrawn breath.
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He could hear her sharply indrawn breath, the effort it took not to comment.
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She couldn't prevent her tiny indrawn breath.
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She heard the indrawn breath hiss sharply through his teeth, and felt the wave of emotion that washed over him.
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She started, her indrawn breath a soft hiss.
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The beautiful brocade coat stretched taut across the back, spreading to an intimidating width with his angry, indrawn breath.
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There was a brief silence like an indrawn breath.
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There were indrawn breaths at such plain speaking, but no actual rebuttals.
intake of breath
▪
All of a sudden, she realised there had been a collective intake of breath and that everyone around her was staring at the monitors.
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Crystal iced spires in twinkling reflection, Sharp intake of breath at such perfection.
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I force her skinny little arms into the position I need and ignore the sharp intake of breath.
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There was a sharp intake of breath behind him, and there she stood in the doorway looking at him.
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There was a sharp intake of breath.
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Truculently she pushed her hands through the glossy waves and then froze, suddenly aware of Lucenzo's prolonged intake of breath.
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When he heard the deep intake of breath, Joe related.
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Where an intake of breath is not necessarily followed by an exhalation.
not hold your breath
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Wall Street is not holding its breath waiting for a new deal.
save your breath
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He might as well have saved his breath - a sea of green benches confronted the Ulster members.
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She might as well have saved her breath.
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You can save your breath, Fiver.
take your breath away
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The view from the overlook will take your breath away.
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And if they don't take your breath away the scenery certainly will.
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His arrogance almost took her breath away.
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She had taken his breath away when she appeared at the door.
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Some of it was charmingly primitive, some of it so exotically painted it took your breath away.
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The audacity of it takes my breath away, the nerve of the man.
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The volatility of the top performers can take your breath away.
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This time it was not Ana who took her breath away.
waste your breath
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Besides, something told her she'd be wasting her breath.
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I ain going waste my breath.
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I figure why waste my breath.
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Was there any point in even wasting her breath trying to convince him?
▪
You know it and so do I. So don't waste your breath!
with bated breath
▪
The soldiers' families waited with bated breath for news.
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From July onwards the town of Whaddon had waited with bated breath.
▪
I was waiting with bated breath for him to say something, anything, that wasn't a cliche.
▪
Neither Bradford nor Birmingham regrets entering the tourist trade - the industry waits with bated breath to see how Swindon fares.
▪
So now I wait with bated breath.
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
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His teeth were rotten and he had bad breath .
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How long can you hold your breath underwater?
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I can smell alcohol on your breath .
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I could feel the horse's breath on the back of my neck.
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It was so cold they could see their breath .
EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS
▪
A slight popping, as if she had been holding her breath .
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Her breath caught as a strange little frisson of excitement slid from her throat to her toes at the thought.
▪
Seconds later, the breath once again hissed into her chest, this time with painful intensity.
▪
She tensed; very softy he blew into her ear, until she quivered as his warm breath passed through her.
▪
She took a few deep breaths and told herself that she could handle him.
▪
The boy laughed at them for running and being out of breath for nothing.
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To get rid of garlic breath try strong coffee, cloves, honey, yogurt, or parsley.
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Two minutes and twenty seconds for Shirley, fourteen minutes for Marylin, and for Virginia, a few breaths.