thở hắt ra
Definition
- Verb phrase:
- To exhale with a gasp or a final breath: Refers specifically to the act of breathing out heavily or with effort, often associated with the final breaths before death, extreme exhaustion, or profound relief.
Usage Examples
- Verb phrase:
- Người bệnh nặng chỉ còn thở hắt ra. (The critically ill patient is only gasping out breaths.)
- Sau cơn đau đớn, anh ấy thở hắt ra một hơi dài. (After the pain, he let out a long, exhausted sigh.)
- Tiếng thở hắt ra cuối cùng của người lính. (The soldier's final, gasped exhalation.)
Advanced Usage
- This phrase is most commonly used in literary, medical, or dramatic contexts to describe a breath that signifies an end or extreme physical state, such as dying, collapsing from fatigue, or releasing pent-up emotion.
Variants and Related Words
- Thở (v): to breathe.
- Thở hắt (v): to gasp, to exhale heavily (a slightly shorter form with the same core meaning).
- Hắt hơi (v): to sneeze (a different action; note the distinction).
Synonyms
- To gasp out: To emit breath in a sudden, short burst.
- To exhale heavily: To breathe out with great force or effort.
- To expire (in agony): To breathe one's last breath, especially with difficulty.
Related Idioms
- While "thở hắt ra" itself is descriptive, it is central to the imagery in phrases describing death or extreme effort.
- Thở hắt ra hơi cuối cùng: to breathe one's last gasp.
- Ông cụ đã thở hắt ra hơi cuối cùng lúc nửa đêm. (The old man breathed his last gasp at midnight.)