as in panting
to breathe hard, quickly, or with difficulty
the runner was audibly gasping by the end of the marathon
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Recent Examples of gasping
Each speech in Policy is time-limited; kids speak like gasping auctioneers to cram in arguments their opponents must try to rebut.
—
Eli Durst, New Yorker, 4 May 2026
Symptoms of pertussis, commonly known as whooping cough, resemble a cold, with a cough that usually worsens over weeks and can cause gasping, vomiting and difficulty breathing, the Pasadena Public Health Department said in a statement announcing the outbreak.
—Fedor Zarkhin, Los Angeles Times, 30 Apr. 2026
Using the wrong soil Garden soil scooped from the yard and packed into containers tends to compact quickly, leaving roots gasping.
—Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 29 Apr. 2026
Within a few weeks of starting the treatments, O’Neal was walking without gasping and talking without pausing to gobble air.
—Courtney Crowder, USA Today, 18 Apr. 2026
Before Heuermann changed his plea, Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney asked him to confirm details surrounding each murder as members of the victims' families were heard gasping and audibly crying in the courtroom gallery.
—Julia Bonavita, FOXNews.com, 8 Apr. 2026
Slayyyter shimmies onto the beat like an amoral John Waters heroine, cruising over the choppy momentum while recounting a toxic love affair in gasping Fred Schneider intonation.
—Harry Tafoya, Pitchfork, 2 Apr. 2026
Olivia Miles makes the types of nifty passes that can leave fans gasping in astonishment.
—CBS News, 17 Mar. 2026
Now, a walk down the block with his kids leaves him gasping for breath and reaching for his oxygen tank.
—Ethan Baron, Mercury News, 16 Mar. 2026
Eli Durst, New Yorker, 4 May 2026
Symptoms of pertussis, commonly known as whooping cough, resemble a cold, with a cough that usually worsens over weeks and can cause gasping, vomiting and difficulty breathing, the Pasadena Public Health Department said in a statement announcing the outbreak.
—Fedor Zarkhin, Los Angeles Times, 30 Apr. 2026
Using the wrong soil Garden soil scooped from the yard and packed into containers tends to compact quickly, leaving roots gasping.
—Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 29 Apr. 2026
Within a few weeks of starting the treatments, O’Neal was walking without gasping and talking without pausing to gobble air.
—Courtney Crowder, USA Today, 18 Apr. 2026
Before Heuermann changed his plea, Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney asked him to confirm details surrounding each murder as members of the victims' families were heard gasping and audibly crying in the courtroom gallery.
—Julia Bonavita, FOXNews.com, 8 Apr. 2026
Slayyyter shimmies onto the beat like an amoral John Waters heroine, cruising over the choppy momentum while recounting a toxic love affair in gasping Fred Schneider intonation.
—Harry Tafoya, Pitchfork, 2 Apr. 2026
Olivia Miles makes the types of nifty passes that can leave fans gasping in astonishment.
—CBS News, 17 Mar. 2026
Now, a walk down the block with his kids leaves him gasping for breath and reaching for his oxygen tank.
—Ethan Baron, Mercury News, 16 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gasping
panting
Verb
-
The window next to my desk overlooks the gym’s large communal exercise room, and throughout the day, I am taunted by the sight of gyrating bodies panting through a Zumba class or a kettlebell set.—
Rachel Syme,
New Yorker,
8 May 2026
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For one, there’s Jean-Michel Basquiat’s monumental panting Museum Security (Broadway Meltdown), from 1983, set for Sotheby’s contemporary art sale on May 14, estimated at $45 million.—
Devorah Lauter,
ARTnews.com,
4 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Gasping.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gasping. Accessed 9 May. 2026.
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