breath S3 W2 /breθ/ BrE AmE noun
[ Word Family: noun : ↑ breath , ↑ breather , ↑ breathing ; adjective : ↑ breathless , ↑ breathy ; verb : ↑ breathe ; adverb : ↑ breathlessly ]
[ Language: Old English ; Origin: bræth ]
1 .
a) [uncountable] the air that you send out of your lungs when you breathe:
Leo could smell the wine on her breath.
Let your breath out slowly.
b) [uncountable] air that you take into your lungs:
When he reached the top of the stairs, his heart was pounding and he was gasping for breath.
c) [countable] an amount of air that you take into your lungs:
Shaun took a deep breath and dived in.
► Do not confuse the noun breath /breθ/ with the verb breathe /briːð/ : She took a breath and continued. | I can’t breathe in here!
2 . a breath of fresh air
a) something that is new and different in a way you think is exciting and good:
Osborne’s play brought a breath of fresh air to the British theatre.
b) clean air outside, that you feel you need after being inside for a long time:
I’m going outside for a breath of fresh air.
3 . don’t hold your breath informal used to say that something is not going to happen soon:
The system’s due for an update, but don’t hold your breath.
4 . catch your breath ( also get your breath back ) to start breathing normally again after running or making a lot of effort:
Slow down, I need to catch my breath.
5 . don’t waste your breath ( also save your breath ) spoken used to say that someone will not be able to persuade someone else, so there is no point in trying:
Save your breath. She’s already made up her mind.
Will he listen to me or will I just be wasting my breath?
6 . take sb’s breath away to be extremely beautiful or exciting:
The view from the top will take your breath away.
7 . under your breath in a quiet voice so that no one can hear you:
‘Son of a bitch,’ he muttered under his breath.
8 . in the same breath
a) ( also in the next breath ) used to say that someone has said two things at once that are so different from each other they cannot both be true:
He criticized the film, then predicted in the same breath that it would be a great success.
b) if you mention two people or things in the same breath, you show that you think they are alike or are related:
I became nervous when the doctor mentioned my mother’s name and ‘cancer’ in the same breath.
in the same breath as/with
a young poet mentioned in the same breath as T.S. Eliot
9 . with your last/dying breath at the moment when you are dying:
With his last breath, he cursed his captors.
10 . [singular] written a very small amount or a sign of something
breath of
They did everything they could to avoid the slightest breath of scandal.
11 . a breath of air/wind literary a slight movement of air:
Scarcely a breath of air disturbed the stillness of the day.
⇨ with bated breath at ↑ bated
• • •
COLLOCATIONS
■ verbs
▪ take a breath (=breathe in)
Alex took a deep breath, then jumped into the pool.
▪ let your breath out (=breathe out)
Let your breath out slowly and relax.
▪ hold your breath (=not breathe out for a few seconds or minutes)
How long can you hold your breath underwater?
▪ be out of breath (=have difficulty breathing after running, hurrying etc)
Andrew hurried in, slightly out of breath.
▪ be short of breath (=be unable to breathe easily because you are ill, old etc)
Near the top of the mountain I started to feel short of breath.
▪ gasp/fight for breath (=have difficulty breathing)
He was lying on the floor gasping for breath.
▪ get your breath back ( also catch your breath ) (=start breathing normally again)
He leant against a tree until he had got his breath back.
▪ pause for breath
She talked solidly for five minutes, hardly pausing for breath.
▪ draw breath written (=breathe)
I hid behind the door, hardly daring to draw breath.
■ adjectives
▪ bad breath (=that smells unpleasant)
Smoking gives you bad breath.
▪ a deep/long breath (=in which you breathe a lot of air in slowly)
She took a deep breath and knocked on the door.
▪ a shallow breath (=in which you breathe a small amount of air in)
Shallow breaths are often a sign of nervousness.
■ phrases
▪ shortness of breath (=when you are unable to breathe easily)
Symptoms include dizziness and shortness of breath.
▪ an intake of breath (=when you breathe in very quickly and suddenly, especially because you are surprised)
He gave a sharp intake of breath.
|
His first response was a sharp intake of breath.