Synonyms of breathing

breathing 1 of 2

adjective

as in alive

having or showing life

realized that he didn't need a comic-book superhero, since he had a real, breathing hero in his father

Synonyms & Similar Words

• alive
• live
• living
• animate
• active
• animated
• dynamic
• surviving
• quick
• lively
• thriving
• existing
• vibrant
• vigorous
• current
• going
• existent
• prevailing
• vivacious
• vital
• extant
• resurrected

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• cold
• dead
• dying
• inanimate
• deceased
• breathless
• lifeless
• expired
• asleep
• nonliving
• departed
• fading
• defunct
• moribund
• resting
• stillborn
• gone
• ghostly
• absent
• nonexistent
• ghostlike
• vanished
• terminated
• wiped out
• finished
• extinct
• fallen
• lost
• lapsed
• barren
• desert
• reposing
• zombielike
• ghosty
• perished

breathing

2 of 2

verb

present participle of breathe

1

as in snoring

to inhale and exhale air

sometimes it gets so hot in here that it's hard to even breathe

Synonyms & Similar Words

• snoring
• respiring
• gasping
• panting
• wheezing
• inspiring
• huffing
• puffing
• blowing (out)
• inbreathing
• sniffing
• drawing
• snorting
• yawning
• snuffing
• snuffling
• expiring
• whiffing
• suspiring

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• choking
• suffocating
• asphyxiating
• smothering
• gagging
• stifling
• strangling
• throttling
• garroting

2

as in living

to have life

as long as I breathe, you will have a place to stay

Synonyms & Similar Words

• living
• being
• existing
• ruling
• subsisting
• surviving
• kicking
• continuing
• keeping (on)
• enduring
• lasting
• leading
• abiding
• flourishing
• persisting
• running on
• moving
• holding on
• holding up
• thriving
• prospering

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• dying
• departing
• expiring
• succumbing
• perishing
• vanishing
• disappearing
• passing away
• evaporating
• stopping
• ending
• ceasing
• dying (down)
• quitting
• discontinuing
• subsiding
• ebbing
• waning
• moderating
• abating
• desisting
• letting up

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of breathing

Verb

The High Cost Of Fake Productivity Founders often want novelty, a challenge or a deadline breathing down their neck. — Chris Kille, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2026

The detailed data reinforces hopes that the product could be a breakthrough treatment for COPD, a progressive lung disease that blocks airflow and makes breathing difficult. — Annika Kim Constantino, CNBC, 8 Sep. 2026

The ramifications of breathing toxic air at Ground Zero has many of those who lived or worked in Lower Manhattan at the time angry and worried. — Jennifer McLogan, CBS News, 8 Sep. 2026

On Sunday, ⁠the disaster agency called for people to wear masks while traveling outdoors to avoid breathing in the ash. — CNN Money, 7 Sep. 2026

The needle accidentally punctured Taylor’s lung, causing chest pain and difficulty breathing. — Los Angeles Times, 7 Sep. 2026

Wear safety goggles and hearing protection, and potentially a face mask to avoid breathing in large amounts of dust or pollen. — Bestreviews, Chicago Tribune, 7 Sep. 2026

But The Debut grows to become something altogether wilder, a fire-breathing encomium to the reality-altering power of acting. — Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 6 Sep. 2026

At one point, he was charged in the death of a woman who stopped breathing during one of his ceremonies. — The Week Us, TheWeek, 2 Sep. 2026