suspire

/səˈspaɪər/

Other forms: suspires; suspiring; suspired

When you suspire, you breathe deeply or sigh. You might suspire melodramatically as you listen to your best friend complain about her allowance for the thousandth time.

The verb suspire is considered obsolete today—you'll probably only encounter it when you're reading poetry. In Robert Frost's poem "Sitting by a Bush in Broad Sunlight," he wrote: "And from that one intake of fire / All creatures still warmly suspire." Not only is it a literary way to say "breathe," but it also rhymes nicely with "fire." The Latin root is spirare, "to breathe."

Definitions of suspire

1. verb

   heave or utter a sigh; breathe deeply and heavily
   synonyms: sigh

   type of:

   breathe, respire, take a breath

   draw air into, and expel out of, the lungs
2. verb

   draw air into, and expel out of, the lungs
   synonyms: breathe, respire, take a breath

   respire

   undergo the biomedical and metabolic processes of respiration by taking up oxygen and producing carbon monoxide

   respire

   breathe easily again, as after exertion or anxiety

   types:

   respire

   breathe easily again, as after exertion or anxiety

   choke

   breathe with great difficulty, as when experiencing a strong emotion

   hyperventilate

   breathe excessively hard and fast

   hiccough, hiccup

   breathe spasmodically, and make a sound

   sigh

   heave or utter a sigh; breathe deeply and heavily

   breathe out, exhale, expire

   expel air

   breathe in, inhale, inspire

   draw in (air)

   wheeze

   breathe with difficulty

   yawn

   utter a yawn, as from lack of oxygen or when one is tired

   saw logs, saw wood, snore

   breathe noisily during one's sleep

   aspirate

   suck in (air)

   snort

   make a snorting sound by exhaling hard

   blow

   exhale hard

   sniff, sniffle

   inhale audibly through the nose

   snivel, snuffle

   snuff up mucus through the nose

   snuff

   inhale audibly through the nose

   drag, draw, puff

   suck in or take (air)

   huff, snort

   inhale recreational drugs

   gasp

   inhale sharply and suddenly, as with shock