Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Relating to breathing with a whistling sound: Describes a person, animal, or the sound they make when breathing with difficulty, producing a high-pitched, whistling noise, often due to congestion or illness.
   • Having a tone of a reed instrument: Describes a sound that is thin, high-pitched, and somewhat unsteady, reminiscent of the sound produced by a reed instrument like an oboe or clarinet.

Usage and Examples

• Describing breathing or a person:
  • After running up the stairs, he was wheezy and had to sit down.
  • The doctor listened to the patient's wheezy chest.
• Describing a sound or object:
  • The old pump made a wheezy noise before it finally broke.
  • He played a wheezy tune on the old accordion.

Advanced Usage

• "to sound wheezy": to produce a wheezing sound.
  • The engine started to sound wheezy after years of neglect.
• "to become/grow wheezy": to develop a wheeze.
  • The air in the room was so dusty that she began to grow wheezy.

Variants and Related Words

• Wheeze (verb/noun): To breathe with a wheezing sound / the sound itself.
  • The asthmatic child began to wheeze. (verb)
  • We could hear a faint wheeze from the other room. (noun)
• Wheezily (adverb): In a wheezy manner.
  • He laughed wheezily.

Synonyms

• Asthmatic: Characterized by or suffering from asthma, often involving wheezing.
• Rasping: Making a harsh, grating sound (can be similar to wheezy in some contexts).
• Whistling: Making a clear, high-pitched sound by forcing breath through a narrow opening (describes the sound quality).

Antonyms

• Clear: (of breathing or sound) free from obstruction or raspiness.
• Smooth: (of breathing or sound) even and uninterrupted.

Related Phrases and Idioms

• "a wheezy old...": A common collocation used to describe old machinery, vehicles, or instruments that make such sounds.
  • He drove a wheezy old truck that smoked and rattled.
• "to have a wheezy laugh/cough": To have a laugh or cough that is accompanied by a wheezing sound.
  • Grandpa had a wheezy laugh that was full of character.

Adjective

1. relating to breathing with a whistling sound
2. having a tone of a reed instrument