air

en-noun

air (countable and uncountable, plural airs)

→ Jersey Dutch: êr

From Middle English aire, from Old French air, from Latin āēr, from Ancient Greek ἀήρ (aḗr). Displaced native Old English lyft. More at lift, loft.

хӏауа

mixture of gases making up the atmosphere of the Earth

luftrener

air conditioner or the processed air it produces

ayr

especially when referring to the form of music

Jeeves: Foreign travel often liberates emotions best kept in check, sir. The air of North America is notoriously stimulating in this regard, as witness the regrettable behavior of its inhabitants in 1776.
B. Wooster: Hm? What happened in 1776, Jeeves?
Jeeves: I prefer not to dwell on it, if it's convenient to you, sir.

1991 May 12, “Kidnapped!”, in Jeeves and Wooster, Series 2, Episode 5:

There was a tension in the air which made me suspect an approaching storm.

(uncountable) The substance constituting Earth's atmosphere: a gaseous mixture of nitrogen, oxygen, and various trace gases.

(historical, medicine) A local environment or atmosphere, in the context of its effects on behavior, health, weather, etc.


breath

breath (countable and uncountable, plural breaths)

Breath (disambiguation)
Brill Publishers

From Middle English breeth, breth, from Old English brǣþ (“odor, scent, stink, exhalation, vapor”), from Proto-Germanic *brēþiz (“vapour, waft, exhalation, breath”) (compare German Brodem (“haze, vapor; breath”), of a different but related formation), of unknown origin; perhaps from Proto-Indo-European *gʰwer- (“smell”) or alternatively from *bʰreh₁- (“to blow; breath, vapor, steam”), but without certain Indo-European cognates outside Germanic.

inh

keep one's breath to cool one's porridge

save one's breath to cool one's porridge

I could feel the runner's breath on my shoulder.

(uncountable) Air expelled from the lungs.


breathe

en-verb

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

breathes (present singular third-person)
breathing (participle present)
breathed (participle past)
breathed (past)
breathe (infinitive)

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

inh

(intransitive) To draw air into (inhale), and expel air from (exhale), the lungs in order to extract oxygen and excrete waste gases.

If you breathe on a mirror, it will fog up.

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


gasp

en-verb

gasp (third-person singular simple present gasps, present participle gasping, simple past and past participle gasped)

gasps (present singular third-person)
gasping (participle present)
gasped (participle past)
gasped (past)

From Middle English gaspen, gayspen (“to gape, outbreathe”), related to and likely derived from Old Norse geispa (“to yawn”) or its descendant Danish gispe, which may be related to gapa (“to gape”).

The old man gasped his last few words.

(transitive) To speak in a breathless manner.


ventilate

ventilate (third-person singular simple present ventilates, present participle ventilating, simple past and past participle ventilated)

ventilates (present singular third-person)
ventilating (participle present)
ventilated (participle past)
ventilated (past)

From Middle English, borrowed from Latin ventilātus, past participle of ventilō.

To replace stale or noxious air with fresh.

проветрявам

to replace stale or noxious air with fresh

To circulate air through a building, etc.

вентилирам

to circulate air through a building, etc.

To expose something to the circulation of fresh air.

aerumi

to expose something to the circulation of fresh air


ventilation

en-noun

ventilation (countable and uncountable, plural ventilations)

Borrowed from Middle French ventilation, from Old French ventilacion, from Late Latin ventilatio, from Latin ventilo.
Morphologically ventilate + -ion

The mechanical system used to circulate and replace air.


air-cooled

Cooled by air (such as an engine, rather than by other means such as water).


hot air

The balloon was equipped with a burner to create hot air for lift.

(literal) Air that has been heated, especially so as to function as the lifting agent of a hot-air balloon.


air bed

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-air bed.wav

A bed that is inflated with air; typically used as a portable, temporary bed.


air mattress

A mattress that is inflated with air, and used as a temporary or permanent bed.


air conditioner

air conditioner (plural air conditioners)

A machine that is used to control temperature and humidity in an enclosed space.

kondicioner

a machine that is used to control temperature and humidity in an enclosed space

HVAC

heating, ventilation and air conditioning


air purifier

A device used to remove contaminants from the air.


air bubble

A small pocket of air inside a solid, a liquid or surrounded by a colloid within a larger fluid environment.


air pressure

air pressure (usually uncountable, plural air pressures)

The air pressure in the rear tyres should often be higher than in the front tyres.

the (amount of) pressure of air within something


air pump

A pump that moves air either into or out of something.


air cleaner

Any device that filters or otherwise cleans air; an air purifier.


air cushion

A layer of trapped air that supports a hovercraft.


air hole

A hole in any surface that allows air or other gases to pass, especially an opening in the surface of a frozen lake etc.


lilo

From the name of the company which made rubberised canvas air-mattresses from the 1940s to the 1970s under the trademark name "Li-Lo" (a sensational spelling of lie low).


mid-air

The dog ran, jumped, and caught the ball in mid-air.

The 44-metre landslip north of Hook left track hanging in mid-air as the clay embankment collapsed beneath it.

2023 January 25, Paul Clifton, “Network News: Landslip wrecks London commuter services for 'weeks'”, in RAIL, number 975, page 8:

The middle of the air, as while in flight.


compressed air

Compressed air is used for the operation of certain contactors, the sanders, the horn, and the re-fuelling equipment, but vacuum brakes are fitted to the locomotive.

1951 January, “Diesel-Electric Branch-Line Locomotive for British Railways”, in Railway Magazine, page 71:

Air which has been reduced in volume and increased in pressure for use in industrial processes or for cleaning.

هَوَاء مَضْغُوط

hawāʔ maḍḡūṭ


aeration

aeration (countable and uncountable, plural aerations)

/ɛːˈɹeɪʃ(ə)n/

The Mekydro transmission employs a single converter and a four-speed mechanical gearbox, which has the advantage of cheapness and simplicity for the same number of gear changes, and does away with the necessity for constantly emptying and filling converters, which tends to harm the oil by aeration.

1960 January, “The Swindon Type "4" diesel-hydraulic units”, in Trains Illustrated, pages 41–42:

The process by which air is circulated through or mixed with a substance such as soil or a liquid.


air resistance

air resistance (usually uncountable, plural air resistances)

(physics) The action of friction that slows something moving through air; drag.

lugweerstand

friction that slows things moving through air


air compressor

A machine for generating compressed air, typically for use by air-powered tools or paint sprayers.


fresh air

Farmers are generally very healthy people, because they have a healthy diet and get lots of fresh air.

After spending all week locked up in his room working on his project, James was pleased to get some fresh air in the park.

The natural, clean air from outside, as opposed to the relatively stuffy air inside.


take a deep breath

en-verb

take a deep breath (third-person singular simple present takes a deep breath, present participle taking a deep breath, simple past took a deep breath, past participle taken a deep breath)

takes a deep breath (present singular third-person)
taking a deep breath (participle present)
took a deep breath (past)
taken a deep breath (participle past)