Meaning of “breath” in the English Dictionary

English

"breath" in English

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breathnoun

uk ​ /breθ/ us ​ /breθ/

B1 [ U ] the air that goes into and out of your lungs:

Her breath smelled of garlic.
She was dizzy and short of breath (= unable to breathe in enough air).
He burst into the room, red-faced and out of breath (= unable to breathe comfortably because of tiredness or excitement).
catch your breath also get your breath (back)

C1 to pause or rest for a short time until you can breathe comfortably or regularly again:

I had to stop running to catch my breath.
draw breath

› to breathe:

Without pausing to draw breath she told me everything.

› to pause for a short time between doing one thing and the next:

Give me a minute to draw breath, won't you?
hold your breath

B2 to keep air in your lungs and not release it so that you need more:

How long can you hold your breath under water?

C2 to wait for something to happen, often feeling anxious:

Fans held their breath waiting for the final whistle.

› [ C ] a single action of breathing air into your lungs

take a breath

B2 to breathe air into your lungs (as a single action):

The doctor told me to take a deep breath (= breathe in a lot of air).
a breath of air

› the smallest amount of wind:

There wasn't a breath of air in the room.

› a short period of time spent outside:

I'm just going out for a breath of (fresh) air - I won't be long.

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Thesaurus: synonyms and related words

Idiom(s)

a breath of fresh air
don't hold your breath
in the same breath
take sb's breath away
under your breath
with your last/dying breath

(Definition of “breath” from the Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

"breath" in American English

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breathnoun [ C/U ]

us ​ /breθ/

› the air that you take into and let out of your lungs:

[ C usually sing ] She drew/took a deep breath.
[ U ] He seemed a little out of breath (= to be breathing too fast).
[ C usually sing ] As he jumped in the pool, he held his breath (= delayed releasing the air in his lungs).

Idiom(s)

a breath of fresh air

(Definition of “breath” from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

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