respiration
noun
res·pi·ra·tion
| \ ˌre-spə-ˈrā-shən
\
\
Definition of respiration
1a
: the movement of air or dissolved gases into and out of the lungs
b
: a single complete act of breathing
… the patient was cyanotic and unconscious with labored respirations at 40/min.— Dorwyn W. Croom
2
: the physical and chemical processes (such as breathing and diffusion) by which an organism supplies its cells and tissues with the oxygen needed for metabolism and relieves them of the carbon dioxide formed in energy-producing reactions
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Other Words from respiration
respiratory
\ ˈre-sp(ə-)rə-ˌtȯr-ē
, ri-ˈspī-rə- \
adjective
, ri-ˈspī-rə- \
adjective
Examples of respiration in a Sentence
The doctor checked his heartbeat and respiration.
Recent Examples on the Web
The lab has technology that analyzes facial expressions, skin responses, heart and respiration rates, eye-tracking and neural signals to help researchers learn how emotional responses drive decision-making. — Lynn Brezosky, ExpressNews.com, "Study: Richer or poorer, cheaters cheat," 31 July 2019 And, as in sleep lab studies, the headband also tracks head movement, heart rate, and respiration, relying on sound recordings and a miniature accelerometer like those found in smartphones. — Kelly Mayes, Science | AAAS, "Brain-monitoring headbands could track your sleep as well as a sleep lab," 10 July 2019 Though the numbers alone are breathtaking, there’s something else affecting our respiration: the air quality, which, yesterday in San Francisco, became among the worst in the world. — Calin Van Paris, Vogue, "For Those Grappling With California Wildfires, Dangerous Air Quality Is a New Risk," 16 Nov. 2018 Now fatal opioid overdoses, which can slow respiration to the point that the brain is starved of oxygen, are a growing part of that list. — Ted Alcorn, Vox, "The waiting list for organ transplants is finally shrinking — for a grim reason," 24 Sep. 2018 The scoring system, which has since saved countless babies, evaluates newborns' health on five factors: heart rate, respiration, skin color, muscle tone, and reflexes. — Jessie Yeung, CNN, "Virginia Apgar, the pioneer of neonatal health," 7 June 2018 By measuring blood pressure and respiration, the polygraph machine could tell when a subject was lying. — Peter Rowe, sandiegouniontribune.com, "The truth about lying: we live in a golden age of lies — and lie-detecting," 28 May 2018 While thawing, their hearts resume beating even before ice in the body has completely melted, and pulmonary respiration and blood circulation are restored soon thereafter, according to Constanzo's 1997 Miami University study. — Amy Lieu, Fox News, "Wood frogs' winter survival may depend on holding in urine: study," 2 May 2018 The primitive atmosphere of the earth was greatly richer in carbonic acid gas [carbon dioxide] than the present, and therefore unfit for the respiration of the warm-blooded animals. — Daniel C. Schlenoff, Scientific American, "1968: Lunar Orbiter photos; 1868: The Atmosphere as Greenhouse," 1 May 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'respiration.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for respiration
respiration
noun
English Language Learners Definition of respiration
medical
: the act or process of breathing
See the full definition for respiration in the English Language Learners Dictionary
respiration
noun
res·pi·ra·tion
| \ ˌre-spə-ˈrā-shən
\
\
Kids Definition of respiration
1
: the act or process of breathing : the inhaling of oxygen and the exhaling of carbon dioxide
2
: the process by which cells use oxygen to break down sugar and obtain energy
respiration
noun
res·pi·ra·tion
| \ ˌres-pə-ˈrā-shən
\
\
Medical Definition of respiration
1a
: the movement of respiratory gases (as oxygen and carbon dioxide) into and out of the lungs
b
: a single complete act of breathing
30 respirations per minute
2
: the physical and chemical processes (as breathing and diffusion) by which an organism supplies its cells and tissues with the oxygen needed for metabolism and relieves them of the carbon dioxide formed in energy-producing reactions
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