breathing tube

noun

plural breathing tubes

1

medical : a usually small plastic tube inserted (as through the nose or mouth) into the trachea especially to deliver oxygen or anesthesia to the lungs

… tracheostomy, a complication-prone and cosmetically undesirable insertion of a breathing tube through the neck.

—John Grossmann

especially : endotracheal tube

… her life is sustained by a breathing tube that hospital authorities are unwilling to disconnect.

—Judy Flander

Eventually, anesthesia was called to insert a breathing tube and Mrs. M was placed on a ventilator because she could not breathe adequately on her own.

—Kiran Gupta

2

: a tubular anatomical part through which air passes into or out of the body: such as

a

: a trachea or bronchial tube of an air-breathing vertebrate

… immediate help would be available to any student suffering anaphylaxis, the severe allergic reaction that can close off breathing tubes and send the body into shock.

—Noreen S. Ahmed-Ullah

Bronchiectasis is abnormal dilation of the bronchi, the breathing tubes of the lungs.

—Paul G. Donohue

b

: one of the air-conveying tubules forming the respiratory system of most insects and many other arthropods : trachea sense 3

… tracheal mites, even tinier parasites, which attack bees' breathing tubes …

—Elizabeth Kolbert

Examples of breathing tube in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The family had hoped to wean the boy off his breathing tube pending further promising results. —Christina Coulter, Fox News, 4 June 2024

If general anesthesia was used, the breathing tube will be removed and the anesthesia team will make sure that breathing is stable before taking you or your child to the recovery area. —Troy Bedinghaus, Od, Verywell Health, 1 June 2024

Advertisement She was intubated after her surgery, but friends shared photos of her in the following days from her hospital room, where she was shown without any breathing tubes. —Nathan Solis, Los Angeles Times, 28 May 2024

The joy spilled out after waking up from the 5 1/2-hour surgery, when a breathing tube was removed. —Bryce Miller, San Diego Union-Tribune, 24 May 2024

These can include inserting a breathing tube, administering medications and possibly shocking the patient again. —Helen Ouyang, New York Times, 27 Mar. 2024

His lungs also might start hemorrhaging, blood and mucus filling his breathing tube. —Helen Ouyang, New York Times, 27 Mar. 2024

The protocol in Alabama calls for an inmate to be is strapped to a gurney and fitted with a mask and a breathing tube. —Mary Kekatos, ABC News, 25 Jan. 2024

The protocol in Alabama called for Smith to be strapped to a gurney and fitted with a mask and a breathing tube. —Mary Kekatos, ABC News, 30 Jan. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1800, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

breathing tube

noun

1

: a trachea or bronchial tube of an air-breathing vertebrate

2

: trachea sense 2

3

: a usually small plastic tube inserted into the trachea through the mouth or nose to maintain an unobstructed passageway especially to deliver oxygen or anesthesia to the lungs

Medical Definition

breathing tube

noun

1

: a tubular anatomical part (as a trachea or bronchial tube) through which air passes into or out of the body of an air-breathing vertebrate

… immediate help would be available to any student suffering anaphylaxis, the severe allergic reaction that can close off breathing tubes and send the body into shock.

—Noreen S. Ahmed-Ullah, The Chicago Tribune

Bronchiectasis is abnormal dilation of the bronchi, the breathing tubes of the lungs.

—Paul G. Donohue, The Springfield (Massachusetts) Union News

2

: a usually small plastic tube inserted (as through the nose or mouth) into the trachea especially to deliver oxygen or anesthesia to the lungs

… tracheostomy, a complication-prone and cosmetically undesirable insertion of a breathing tube through the neck.

—John Grossmann, Science 84

especially : endotracheal tube

Eventually, anesthesia was called to insert a breathing tube and Mrs. M was placed on a ventilator because she could not breathe adequately on her own.

—Kiran Gupta, The Boston Globe