Meanings
- Breathing with difficulty, in particular due to physical activity.
We were all out of breath when we got to the summit.
5 more examples
Cam. [i.e., Canidus.] Our Fortune on the Sea is out of breath, And ſinkes moſt lamentably. Had our Generall Bin what he knew himſelfe, it had gone well: Oh his [i.e., he] ha's giuen example for our flight, Moſt groſſely by his owne. Eno[barbus]. I, are you thereabouts? Why then goodnight indeede.
c. 1606–1607 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Anthonie and Cleopatra”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene x], page 355, column 2But before al of them were assembled to begin their sports, there came a fellow, who being out of breath (or seeming so to be for haste) with humble hastines told Basilius, that his Mistres, the Lady Cecropia, had sent him to excuse the mischance of her beastes ranging in that dãgerous sort, being happened by the folly of the keeper; […]
The New Arcadia
c. 1580 (date written), Philippe Sidnei [i.e., Philip Sidney], “(please specify the folio)”, in [Fulke Greville; Matthew Gwinne; John Florio], editors, The Countesse of Pembrokes Arcadia [The New Arcadia], London: […] [John Windet] for William Ponsonbie, published 1590, →OCLCWhich Soldiers with their continual Shot, killed divers of the Vauntguard led by the Hamiltons, who courageouſly and fiercely aſcending up the Hill, were already out of Breath when the Regent’s Vauntguard joined with them.
1735, James Melville, The Memoirs of Sir James Melvil of Halhill […], page 182When at last we stopped in a tumble of bodies on the grass, laughing, and in Dad's case, out of breath, we were like little kids (I mean 5 or 6! After all I am 12!) at the end of a playground session.
2008 December 30, David Joutras, chapter 8, in A Ghost in the World (Brother's Keepers; 1), →ISBN, page 55He was always scared that he wouldn't return. Aaroo, Aaroo” howled Dunchest until he was out of breath and then he began to whimper realizing Cutlass was not coming back until the mission was over.
2018, Ravi Struck, Josh Weisman, Pirates of the Seven Seas: Book One: Gromund's Tales, BookBaby, →ISBNSynonyms: out of wind
Synonyms & antonyms
prepositional phraseBreathing with difficulty, in particular due to physical activity.
Translations
Afrikaans asemloos
- asemloosbreathing with difficulty
Arabic لَاهِث
- لَاهِث (lāhiṯ)breathing with difficulty
Catalan sense alè
- sense alèbreathing with difficulty
Chinese Mandarin 氣喘吁吁, 喘不過氣 /喘不过气
- 氣喘吁吁 (qìchuǎnxūxū)breathing with difficulty
- 喘不過氣 /喘不过气 (chuǎnbuguòqì)breathing with difficulty
Czech zadýchaný, udýchaný
- zadýchanýbreathing with difficulty
- udýchanýbreathing with difficulty
Dutch buiten adem
- buiten adembreathing with difficulty
Esperanto anhela
- anhelabreathing with difficulty
Finnish hengästynyt
- hengästynytbreathing with difficulty
French essoufflé, hors d'haleine
- essoufflébreathing with difficulty
- hors d'haleinebreathing with difficulty
- à bout de soufflebreathing with difficulty
German außer Atem
- außer Atembreathing with difficulty
Greek λαχανιασμένος
- λαχανιασμένος (lachaniasménos)breathing with difficulty
Hungarian kifulladt
- kifulladtbreathing with difficulty
Icelandic móður
- móðurbreathing with difficulty
Irish rite as anáil
- rite as anáilbreathing with difficulty
Italian trafelato, senza fiato
- trafelatobreathing with difficulty
- senza fiatobreathing with difficulty
Japanese 息を切らして
- 息を切らして (iki o kirashite)breathing with difficulty
Māori tūngāngā, hēmanawa
- tūngāngābreathing with difficulty
- hēmanawabreathing with difficulty
- pukābreathing with difficulty
Norwegian andpusten
- andpustenbreathing with difficulty
Polish bez tchu, zdyszany
- bez tchubreathing with difficulty
- zdyszanybreathing with difficulty
- zadyszanybreathing with difficulty
- zasapanybreathing with difficulty
Portuguese ofegante, esbaforido
- ofegantebreathing with difficulty
- esbaforidobreathing with difficulty
Romanian cu respirația tăiată
- cu respirația tăiatăbreathing with difficulty
Russian запы́хавшийся, пыхтя́щий
- запы́хавшийся (zapýxavšijsja)breathing with difficulty
- пыхтя́щий (pyxtjáščij)breathing with difficulty
Slovak udýchaný
- udýchanýbreathing with difficulty
Spanish sin aliento, sin hálito
- sin alientobreathing with difficulty
- sin hálitobreathing with difficulty
Swedish andfådd, med andan i halsen
- andfåddbreathing with difficulty
- med andan i halsenbreathing with difficulty
Cite this entry
out of breath. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/out%20of%20breath
“out of breath.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/out%20of%20breath. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “out of breath,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/out%20of%20breath.
Source: out of breath on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.