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cough

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The definition of cough is to force air loudly, without warning through the opening between the vocal cords.

(verb)

An example of to cough is clearing a tickle in your throat.

See cough in Webster's New World College Dictionary

intransitive verb

to expel air suddenly and noisily from the lungs through the glottis, either as the result of an involuntary muscular spasm in the throat or to clear the air passages
to make a sound like this

Origin: ME coughen, akin to MDu cuchen, to cough, Ger keuchen, to gasp

transitive verb

to expel by coughing
to express or utter by coughing

noun

the act or sound of coughing
a condition, as of the lungs or throat, causing frequent coughing

Related Forms:

cougher noun

See cough in American Heritage Dictionary 4

verb coughed, cough·ing, coughs

verb, intransitive

To expel air from the lungs suddenly and noisily, often to keep the respiratory passages free of irritating material.
To make a noise similar to noisy expulsion of air from the lungs: The engine coughed and died.

verb, transitive

To expel by coughing: coughed up phlegm.

noun

The act of coughing.
An illness marked by frequent coughing.

Phrasal Verb: cough up Slang To hand over or relinquish (money or another possession), often reluctantly. To confess or disclose: When he saw that the police might arrest him, he coughed up the details of what he had seen.

Origin:

Origin: Middle English coughen

Origin: , ultimately of imitative origin

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