different between perspire vs breathe

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Old French perspirer, from Latin perspirare (“to breathe everywhere, blow constantly”), from per (“through”) + spirare (“to breath”); see spirit.

Pronunciation

Verb

perspire (third-person singular simple present perspires, present participle perspiring, simple past and past participle perspired)

1. (transitive, intransitive) To emit (sweat or perspiration) through the skin's pores.

   I was perspiring freely after running the marathon.

   • 2010, Susan C. Karant-Nunn, The Reformation of Feeling

     He lists forty reasons, mainly metaphorical, why Christ perspired blood, and his peroration takes twenty-two pages in print.

2. (intransitive) To be evacuated or excreted, or to exude, through the pores of the skin.

   A fluid perspires.

Synonyms

• sweat

Related terms

• conspire
• inspire
• perspiration
• respire
• transpire

Translations

Further reading

• perspire in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• perspire in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.

English

Etymology

From Middle English brethen (“to breathe, blow, exhale, odour”), derived from Middle English breth (“breath”). Eclipsed Middle English ethien and orðiæn, from Old English ?þian and orþian (“to breathe”); as well as Middle English anden, onden, from Old Norse anda (“to breathe”). More at breath.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) enPR: br?th, IPA^(key): /b?i?ð/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /b?ið/
• Rhymes: -i?ð

Verb

breathe (third-person singular simple present breathes, present participle breathing, simple past and past participle breathed)

1. (intransitive) To draw air into (inhale), and expel air from (exhale), the lungs in order to extract oxygen and excrete waste gases.
2. (intransitive) To take in needed gases and expel waste gases in a similar way.

3. (transitive) To inhale (a gas) to sustain life.

4. (intransitive, figuratively) To live.
   • Breathes there a man with soul so dead?

5. (transitive) To draw something into the lungs.

6. (intransitive) To expel air from the lungs, exhale.

7. (transitive) To exhale or expel (something) in the manner of breath.
   • 2012, Timothy Groves, The Book Of Creatures (?ISBN), page 85:

     Mountain Drakes breathe fire, Ice Drakes breathe ice, Swamp Drakes breathe acid, and Forest Drakes breathe lightning.

8. (transitive) To give an impression of, to exude.

9. (transitive) To whisper quietly.

10. To pass like breath; noiselessly or gently; to emanate; to blow gently.
11. (chiefly Evangelical and Charismatic Christianity, with God as agent) To inspire (scripture).
    • 1850, John Howard Hinton, On the Divine Inspiration of the Scriptures. A lecture, etc, page 16:

      The affirmation before us, then, will be, "All scripture is divinely breathed."

    • 1917, J. C. Ferdinand Pittman, Bible Truths Illustrated: For the Use of Preachers, Teachers, Bible-school, Christian Endeavor, Temperance and Other Christian Workers, page 168:

      […] that God, who breathed the Scriptures, "cannot lie," […]

    • 2010, Jay E. Adams, The Christian Counselor's Manual: The Practice of Nouthetic Counseling, Zondervan (?ISBN)

      Paul says that since God breathed the Scriptures, they are therefore useful; he did not put it the other way around (i.e., that they are useful, therefore inspired).

12. (intransitive) To exchange gases with the environment.

13. (intransitive, now rare) To rest; to stop and catch one's breath.
    • Well! breathe awhile, and then to it again!

14. (transitive) To stop, to give (a horse) an opportunity to catch its breath.

15. (transitive) To exercise; to tire by brisk exercise.
16. (transitive, figuratively) To passionately devote much of one's life to (an activity, etc.).

Conjugation

Synonyms

• (to draw air in and out): see Thesaurus:breathe
• (to be passionate about): live and breathe

Derived terms

Related terms

• breath

Translations

Anagrams

• beareth, beheart, herb tea