as in gasping
to breathe hard, quickly, or with difficulty
he was so nervous he began hyperventilating, and the extra oxygen made him dizzy
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Recent Examples of hyperventilating
She was even famously hospitalized for hyperventilating while watching a Lakers game from home.
—
Rachel McRady, PEOPLE, 2 May 2026
Roscoe pulled over; his daughter started hyperventilating.
—Sean Gregory, Time, 10 Dec. 2025
If this sounds like a laundry list of hyperventilating superlatives, then my work here is largely done.
—Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle, 15 Nov. 2025
Specifically, a 1940s B-picture conjuring up some heavy Maria Montez mojo, known as Kiss of the Spider Woman — a typically hyperventilating melodrama that featured a vamping diva playing several parts, including the venomous title character.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 11 Oct. 2025
The hyperactive plotting runs on hyperventilating prose.
—Book Marks
september 11, Literary Hub, 11 Sep. 2025
Rachel McRady, PEOPLE, 2 May 2026
Roscoe pulled over; his daughter started hyperventilating.
—Sean Gregory, Time, 10 Dec. 2025
If this sounds like a laundry list of hyperventilating superlatives, then my work here is largely done.
—Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle, 15 Nov. 2025
Specifically, a 1940s B-picture conjuring up some heavy Maria Montez mojo, known as Kiss of the Spider Woman — a typically hyperventilating melodrama that featured a vamping diva playing several parts, including the venomous title character.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 11 Oct. 2025
The hyperactive plotting runs on hyperventilating prose.
—Book Marks
september 11, Literary Hub, 11 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hyperventilating
Verb
-
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
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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
Verb
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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
-
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
“Hyperventilating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hyperventilating. Accessed 10 May. 2026.
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