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