Definition

1. 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

1. a dyspneic condition