gasp
a sudden, short intake of breath, as in shock or surprise.
a convulsive effort to breathe.
a short, convulsive utterance: the words came out in gasps.
to catch one's breath.
to struggle for breath with the mouth open; breathe convulsively.
to long with breathless eagerness; desire; crave (usually followed by for or after).
to utter with gasps (often followed by out, forth, away, etc.): She gasped out the words.
to breathe or emit with gasps (often followed by away).
Idioms about gasp
last gasp, the point of death; dying: At his last gasp he confessed to the murder.
Origin of gasp
1synonym study For gasp
Other words for gasp
Other words from gasp
- gasp·ing·ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use gasp in a sentence
I am lucky on Secret Six to have an editor, Mark Doyle, who agrees, we want people to gasp out loud.
Gail Simone’s Bisexual Catman and the ‘Secret Six’ | Rich Goldstein | December 6, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTCornelia blenched, for no reason that she could think of; she could not gasp out the "Yes" that she tried to utter.
The Coast of Bohemia | William Dean HowellsShe shrieked and sobbed and rolled over and over, clutching at her flesh, trying to gasp out words that choked her.
In Connection with the De Willoughby Claim | Frances Hodgson BurnettThey seemed to gasp out her grief from the page; sometimes I could scarcely decipher them.
Woven with the Ship | Cyrus Townsend BradyWhenever the rapture sank somewhat, someone would gasp out a half-remembered bit of Mrs. Kitty's former defences.
The Killer | Stewart Edward White
Mr. Rowe was just coming on board again, and I found courage in the emergency to gasp out, "What was that?"
A Great Emergency and Other Tales | Juliana Horatia Gatty Ewing
British Dictionary definitions for gasp
/ (ɡɑːsp) /
(intr) to draw in the breath sharply, convulsively, or with effort, esp in expressing awe, horror, etc
(intr; foll by after or for) to crave
(tr often foll by out) to utter or emit breathlessly
a short convulsive intake of breath
a short convulsive burst of speech
at the last gasp
at the point of death
at the last moment
Origin of gasp
1Derived forms of gasp
- gaspingly, adverb
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Other Idioms and Phrases with gasp
see last gasp.
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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