01 n. Respiration; the act of inhaling and exhaling air.
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1.
Respiration; the act of inhaling and exhaling air.“Subject to a difficulty of breathing.” — Melmoth.
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2.
Air in gentle motion.
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3.
Any gentle influence or operation; inspiration; as, the breathings of the Spirit.
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4.
Aspiration; secret prayer.
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5.
Exercising; promotion of respiration.“Here is a lady that wants breathing too; And I have heard, you knights of Tyre Are excellent in making ladies trip.” — Shak.
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6.
Utterance; communication or publicity by words.“I am sorry to give breathing to my purpose.” — Shak.
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7.
Breathing place; vent.
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8.
Stop; pause; delay.“You shake the head at so long a breathing.” — Shak.
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9.
Also, in a wider sense, the sound caused by the friction of the outgoing breath in the throat, mouth, etc., when the glottis is wide open; aspiration; the sound expressed by the letter h.
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10.
A mark to indicate aspiration or its absence. See Rough breathing, Smooth breathing, below.(Gr. Gram.)
Phrases & compounds
Breathing place —
A pause.
Breathing time —
pause; relaxation.
Breathing while —
time sufficient for drawing breath; a short time.
Smooth breathing —
a mark (’) indicating the absence of the sound of h, as in 'ie`nai (ienai).