breathe
To take air into your body through your nose or mouth and let it out again.
To take air into the lungs and send it out, especially as part of the process of living.
To stop for a short time to rest or feel better after work or stress.
To stop for a short time to rest, relax, or recover from effort or stress.
If something breathes, air can move in and out of it.
To allow air to move in and out, as with certain materials or spaces.
To speak very quietly so that it is almost like a whisper.
To say something very softly, often in a whisper-like way.
To seem full of a feeling or quality.
To seem full of a particular quality or feeling, as if it is strongly present in something.
- Base: breathe
- 3rd Person Singular: breathes
- Present Participle: breathing
- Past: breathed
breathe a sigh of relief
1Exhale after stress ends
To let out a long breath when you feel safe again after being worried or afraid.
- They all breathed a sigh of relief when the missing child was found.
- I breathed a sigh of relief after hearing I passed the exam.
breathe deeply
1Take slow, full breaths
To take slow, long breaths of air into your lungs and let them out fully.
- Breathe deeply to calm yourself before the test.
- She closed her eyes and breathed deeply of the fresh mountain air.
breathe new life into [something]
1Revitalize with energy or ideas
To make something more lively, interesting, or successful again by giving it energy or new ideas.
- The manager hopes the new project will breathe new life into the company.
- A fresh coat of paint breathed new life into the old house.
don't breathe a word (to someone)
1Keep information secret
To not tell anyone about something that is secret.
- Don't breathe a word about the surprise party.
- She promised not to breathe a word of what she had seen.
take your breath away
1Cause amazement or shock
To greatly surprise or impress someone so much that they feel like they stop breathing for a moment.
- The view from the mountain will take your breath away.
- Her beauty took my breath away.