shortness of breath
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Noun:
- A condition of difficult or labored breathing; a feeling of not being able to get enough air into the lungs. It is a symptom characterized by an uncomfortable awareness of breathing or the need to breathe more heavily or rapidly than normal.
Usage
- Shortness of breath is primarily used as a medical or descriptive term for a physical symptom. It is often reported by patients to healthcare providers.
- It is typically used in contexts discussing health, exertion, illness, or emotional states that affect breathing.
- It is a non-count noun and is generally used without an article when referring to the general condition or symptom (e.g., "experiencing shortness of breath"). An article can be used when referring to a specific instance (e.g., "a sudden shortness of breath").
Examples
- Noun:
- Climbing the stairs caused her significant shortness of breath.
- The doctor asked if the patient had experienced any shortness of breath or chest pain.
- A common symptom of anxiety can be a feeling of shortness of breath.
Advanced Usage
- "to experience shortness of breath": This is the most common verb collocation for describing this symptom from the patient's perspective.
- Patients with heart failure often experience shortness of breath during routine activities.
- "to cause shortness of breath": Used to describe the agent or activity that triggers the symptom.
- Vigorous exercise can cause shortness of breath even in healthy individuals.
- "shortness of breath on exertion": A specific clinical phrase meaning breathlessness that occurs during physical activity.
- The medical notes indicated the patient reported shortness of breath on exertion.
Variants and Related Words
- Dyspnea (n): The formal medical term for shortness of breath.
- The clinical diagnosis was acute dyspnea.
- Breathlessness (n): A more common, less clinical synonym for shortness of breath.
- She felt a wave of breathlessness after running for the bus.
- Short-winded (adj): Describing someone who becomes short of breath easily.
- He's become quite short-winded since he stopped exercising.
Synonyms
- Breathlessness: The state of being out of breath.
- Dyspnea: The technical medical term.
- Labored breathing: Emphasizes the visible effort involved in breathing.
- Difficulty breathing: A simpler, descriptive phrase.
Related Phrases
- Out of breath: A common idiom describing the temporary state after physical exertion.
- I'm out of breath from climbing all those stairs.
- Gasping for air/breath: Implies a more severe, urgent struggle to breathe.
- He surfaced from the water, gasping for air.
- Winded: Informal, often used for temporary breathlessness from a blow to the stomach or sudden exertion.
- The fall left him winded and unable to speak for a moment.
Noun
- a dyspneic condition