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

Try the cheap partner-side fixes first, match the mid-tier device to the type of snoring and escalate to a doctor the moment breathing pauses enter the picture. — Lauren Schuster, Charlotte Observer, 24 Sep. 2026

The victim fell to the ground and stopped breathing and had to have CPR performed by bystanders, the report says. — Arkansas Online, 23 Sep. 2026

When to seek medical attention People who use kratom and begin breathing slowly or shallowly, or who become excessively drowsy or difficult to awaken, may be experiencing serious sedation that can interfere with breathing, Steinman said. — Melissa Rudy, FOXNews.com, 23 Sep. 2026

Spend around five minutes slowing down and breathing, though even one minute counts. — Hanna Wickes, Miami Herald, 22 Sep. 2026

But there are signs that some of these cancers are linked to the toxic dust people were breathing for months after the attacks, and aren’t just a factor of aging. — Brenda Goodman, CNN Money, 19 Sep. 2026

Abdulla, who was still breathing, was rushed to the hospital where he was pronounced dead. — Charna Flam, PEOPLE, 18 Sep. 2026

The fish is barely breathing, though its mouth opens and closes. — Literary Hub, 17 Sep. 2026

According to details provided during the call, a 20-year-old woman was having a medical emergency and reported difficulty breathing. — Paula Wethington, CBS News, 16 Sep. 2026