breath
noun uk/breθ/ us/breθ/
B1 [ U ]呼吸的空气;气息
the air that goes into and out of your lungs
Her breath smelled of garlic. 她的嘴里有大蒜味。
She was dizzy and short of breath (= unable to breathe in enough air). 她头昏眼花，上气不接下气。
He burst into the room, red-faced and out of breath (= unable to breathe comfortably because of tiredness or excitement). 他冲进房间，满脸通红，气喘吁吁。
catch your breath( also get your breath (back))C1 停下来将气喘匀
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. 我跑得喘不上气来，不得不停了下来。
draw breath 呼吸
to breathe
Without pausing to draw breath she told me everything. 她气也不喘一口就把一切告诉了我。
hold your breathB2 屏住呼吸
to keep air in your lungs and not release it so that you need more
How long can you hold your breath under water? 在水下你能屏住呼吸多长时间？
[ C ]一次呼吸
a single action of breathing air into your lungs
take a breathB2 吸气
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). 医生让我做深吸气。
a breath of air 一丝微风
the smallest amount of wind
There wasn't a breath of air in the room. 房间里一点儿都不透气。
- More examples
- Her breath reeked of garlic.
- I heard his breath rasping in his chest.
- The disease may cause cold sweating, nausea, vomiting and shortness of breath .
- She paused to get her breath back and then carried on jogging.
- It's terribly smoky in here - I'm just going out for a breath of fresh air.
Idioms
a breath of fresh airidiom C2 令人耳目一新的人（或物）
someone or something that is new and different and makes everything seem more exciting
Angela's so cheerful and lively - she's like a breath of fresh air when she visits. 安杰拉如此快乐，充满活力——她一来就像带来了一阵清新的空气。
don't hold your breathidiom humorous （指不大可能发生）别眼巴巴等着，有你等的
said in order to tell someone that an event is not likely to happen
She said she might finish by this afternoon but don't hold your breath. 她说她有可能在今天下午之前完成，不过你可别眼巴巴等着。
in the same breathidiom 同时，紧接着（指同时说出两件相抵触的事）
If you say two things in the same breath, you say two things that are so different that if one is true, the other must be false.
You say he treats you badly but in the same breath you tell me how much you love him! 你一会儿说他对你有多不好，可一会儿又说你有多爱他！
take someone's breath awayidiom B2 美得令…透不过气来；令…惊叹
to be extremely beautiful or surprising
The beauty of the Taj Mahal took my breath away. 泰姬陵美得让我惊叹。
under your breathidiom C2 低声地，轻声地
quietly so that other people cannot hear exactly what you are saying
He muttered something under his breath. 他低声嘀咕着什么。
with your last/dying breathidiom literary 用最后一口气;临终前
just before you die
She asked him with her dying breath to take care of her child. 她临终前请求他照顾她的孩子。