cough
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cough¹
- /kɒf/ UK
- /kɔːf/ UK
- /kɔf/ US
- /kɑf/ cot caught merger
- /kɑʔf/
- /kɔf/ South Asia
- /kəf/ South Asia
Sounds like qoph (cot–caught merger) · Rhymes with -ɒf, -ɔːf, -ɑːf, -ʌf
Where it comes from
From Middle English coughen, coghen (“to cough; to vomit”) [and other forms], from Old English *cohhian (compare Old English cohhetan (“to bluster; to riot; to cough (?)”)), from Proto-West Germanic *kuh- (“to cough”), ultimately of onomatopoeic origin.
Cognates
* Middle Dutch cuchen (“to cough”) (modern Dutch kuchen (“to cough”); German Low German kuchen (“to cough”))
* Middle High German kûchen (“to breathe (on); to exhale”), kîchen (“to breathe with difficulty”) (modern German keichen, keuchen (“to breathe with difficulty; to gasp, pant”))
* Spanish cof (“coughing sound”)
* West Frisian kiche (“to cough”), kochelje (“to cough persistently”)
verb coughs · coughing · coughed · cough
- Sometimes followed by up: to force (something) out of the lungs or throat by pushing air from the lungs through the glottis (causing a short, explosive sound), and out through the mouth. Sometimes she coughed up blood.
- To cause (oneself or something) to be in a certain condition in the manner described in etymology 1 sense 1.1. He almost coughed himself into a fit.
- To express (words, etc.) in the manner described in etymology 1 sense 1.1. No ſtationary ſteeds / Cough their ovvn knell, vvhile heedleſs of the ſound / The ſilent circle fan themſelves, and quake.
- To surrender (information); to confess.
- Chiefly followed by up: to give up or hand over (something); especially, to pay up (money). By the time you get back the men will all be striking out for the fire, and we'll break for the house and collar the dollars. Everybody cough up what matches he's got.
- To push air from the lungs through the glottis (causing a short, explosive sound) and out through the mouth, usually to expel something blocking or irritating the airway. I breathed in a lungful of smoke by mistake, and started to cough.
- To make a noise like a cough. The engine coughed and sputtered.
- To surrender information; to confess, to spill the beans.
cough²
- /kɒf/ UK
- /kɔːf/ UK
- /kɔf/ US
- /kɑf/ cot caught merger
- /kɑʔf/
- /kɔf/ South Asia
- /kəf/ South Asia
Sounds like qoph (cot–caught merger) · Rhymes with -ɒf, -ɔːf, -ɑːf, -ʌf
Where it comes from
The noun is derived from Middle English cough (“a cough; illness causing coughing”) [and other forms], from coughen (verb): see etymology 1.
The interjection is probably derived from the noun.
noun coughs
- A sudden, often involuntary expulsion of air from the lungs through the glottis (causing a short, explosive sound), and out through the mouth. Behind me, I heard a distinct, dry cough.
-
A bout of repeated coughing (verb etymology 1 sense 2.1); also, a medical condition that causes one to cough.
whooping cough
Similar: tussis
- A noise or sound like a cough (etymology 2, noun sense 1).
- A vocalisation from a bird or other animal resembling a human cough.
interjection
- Used to represent the sound of a cough (noun sense 1), especially when focusing attention on a following utterance, often an attribution of blame or a euphemism: ahem. He was—cough—indisposed.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: tussis, pertussis, hum, cold, spit, suppressant, dickey, toast, guest, tos, everybody, suppressants, syrups, hack, expectorate, harrumph
Translations
Every language
verb to force (something) out of the lungs or throat by pushing air from the lungs through the glottis (causing a short, explosive sound), and out through the mouth
| हिन्दी | खाँसना khā̃snā |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | husten |
| Русский | выка́шливать vykášlivatʹ, вы́кашлять výkašljatʹ |
| العربية | كَحَّ kaḥḥa, سَعَلَ saʕala |
verb to push air from the lungs through the glottis (causing a short, explosive sound) and out through the mouth
| Español | toser |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 기침하다 gichimhada |
| 日本語 | 咳をする seki o suru |
| 中文 | 咳嗽 késou |
| हिन्दी | खांसना khānsnā, खाँसना khā̃snā |
| Kiswahili | -kohoa |
| Português | tossir |
| Français | tousser |
| Deutsch | husten |
| Italiano | tossire |
| Ελληνικά | βήχω vícho |
| Română | tuși |
| Русский | ка́шлять kášljatʹ, кашляну́ть kašljanútʹ |
| Tiếng Việt | ho |
| العربية | سَعَلَ saʕala |
| עברית | השתעל hishta'él |
verb to make a noise like a cough
| Español | toser |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | 咳払いをする sekibarai o suru |
| 中文 | 咳嗽 késou |
| Kiswahili | -kohoa |
| Português | tossir |
| Français | tousser |
| Deutsch | husten |
| Italiano | tossire |
| Ελληνικά | βήχω vícho |
| Русский | ка́шлять kášljatʹ, кашляну́ть kašljanútʹ |
| Tiếng Việt | ho |
| עברית | השתעל hishtaél |
noun sudden, often involuntary expulsion of air from the lungs through the glottis, and out through the mouth
| Español | tos |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 기침 gichim |
| 日本語 | 咳 seki |
| 中文 | 咳嗽 késou |
| हिन्दी | खांसी khānsī, खाँसी khā̃sī |
| Kiswahili | kikohozi |
| Português | tosse |
| Français | toux |
| Deutsch | Husten |
| Italiano | tosse, colpo di tosse |
| Ελληνικά | βήχας víchas |
| Română | tuse |
| Русский | ка́шель kášelʹ |
| Tiếng Việt | sự ho |
| العربية | سُعْلَة suʕla, سُعَال suʕāl, كُحَّة kuḥḥa |
| עברית | שיעול \ שִׁעוּל shi'úl |
Talk about this word "cough." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/cough. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. cough. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/cough "cough." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/cough.Cite this
@misc{cough_2026,
title = {cough},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/cough},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
