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breathe down someone's neck

 - 4 dictionary results

breathe

  [breeth] verb, breathed  [breethd] , breath⋅ing.
Use breathe down someone's neck in a Sentence
–verb (used without object)
1. to take air, oxygen, etc., into the lungs and expel it; inhale and exhale; respire.
2. (in speech) to control the outgoing breath in producing voice and speech sounds.
3. to pause, as for breath; take rest: How about giving me a chance to breathe?
4. to move gently or blow lightly, as air.
5. to live; exist: Hardly a man breathes who has not known great sorrow.
6. to be redolent of.
7. (of a material) to allow air and moisture to pass through easily: The jacket is comfortable because the fabric breathes.
8. (of the skin) to absorb oxygen and give off perspiration.
9. (of a wine) to be exposed to air after being uncorked, in order to develop flavor and bouquet.
–verb (used with object)
10. to inhale and exhale in respiration.
11. to exhale: Dragons breathe fire.
12. to inject as if by breathing; infuse: She breathed life into the party.
13. to give utterance to; whisper.
14. to express; manifest.
15. to allow to rest or recover breath: to breathe a horse.
16. to deprive of breath; tire; exhaust.
17. to cause to pant; exercise.
—Idioms
18. breathe down someone's neck,
a. to be close to someone in pursuit; menace; threaten: Police from four states were breathing down his neck.
b. to watch someone closely so as to supervise or control: If everyone keeps breathing down my neck, how can I get my work done?
19. breathe freely, to have relief from anxiety, tension, or pressure: Now that the crisis was over, he could breathe freely. Also, breathe easily, breathe easy.
20. breathe one's last, to die: He breathed his last and was buried in the churchyard.
21. not breathe a word or syllable, to maintain secrecy; keep a matter confidential: I'll tell you if you promise not to breathe a word.
Origin:
1250–1300; ME brethen, deriv. of breath

Synonyms:
14. utter, tell, murmur, voice; reveal, divulge.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Word Origin & History

breathe 
c.1300, not in O.E., but it retains the original O.E. vowel of its source word, breath. Breather "spell of exercise taken to stimulate the breathing" is from 1836.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: breathe
Pronunciation: 'brEth
Function: verb
Inflected Forms: breathed;breath·ing
intransitive senses
1 : to draw air into and expel it from the lungs : RESPIRE; broadly : to take in oxygen and giveout carbon dioxide through natural processes
2 : to inhale and exhale freely breathe transitive senses
: to inhale and exhale <breathing freshair>
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Idioms & Phrases

breathe down someone's neck

  1. Pursue someone closely; pose a threat to one, as in The immigration authorities were breathing down his neck. [Mid-1900s]

  2. Watch or supervise someone very closely, as in The boss is always breathing down our necks. [Mid-1900s]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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