Cough

noun

/kɑf/

Word Frequency: 5.1

Definitions

1.nounA sudden, usually noisy expulsion of air from the lungs, often involuntary.

"Behind me, I heard a distinct, dry cough."

2.nounA condition that causes one to cough; a tendency to cough.

"Sorry, I can't come to work today – I've got a nasty cough."

3.nounUsed to focus attention on a following utterance, often a euphemism or an attribution of blame

"He was – cough – indisposed."

4.verbTo push air from the lungs in a quick, noisy explosion.

"I breathed in a lungful of smoke by mistake, and started to cough."

5.verb(sometimes followed by "up") To force something out of the throat or lungs by coughing.

"Sometimes she coughed (up) blood."

6.verbTo make a noise like a cough.

"The engine coughed and sputtered."