1. (

• breathing ,
• external_respiration ,
• respiration ,
• ventilation ,

) the bodily process of inhalation and exhalation; the process of taking in oxygen from inhaled air and releasing carbon dioxide by exhalation ;

1. (

• breathe ,
• take_a_breath ,
• respire ,
• suspire ,

) draw air into, and expel out of, the lungs; "I can breathe better when the air is clean"; "The patient is respiring" ;

2. (

• breathe

) be alive; "Every creature that breathes" ;

3. (

• breathe

) impart as if by breathing; "He breathed new life into the old house" ;

4. (

• breathe ,

) allow the passage of air through; "Our new synthetic fabric breathes and is perfect for summer wear" ;

5. (

• breathe ,

) utter or tell; "not breathe a word" ;

6. (

• breathe ,

) manifest or evince; "She breathes the Christian spirit" ;

7. (

• rest ,
• breathe ,
• catch_one's_breath ,
• take_a_breather

) take a short break from one's activities in order to relax ;

8. (

• breathe ,

) reach full flavor by absorbing air and being let to stand after having been uncorked; "This rare Bordeaux must be allowed to breathe for at least 2 hours" ;

9. (

• emit ,
• breathe ,
• pass_off

) expel (gases or odors) ;

1. (

• breathing ,
• eupneic ,
• eupnoeic

) passing or able to pass air in and out of the lungs normally; sometimes used in combination; "the boy was disappointed to find only skeletons instead of living breathing dinosaurs"; "the heavy-breathing person on the telephone" ;