Breath vs Breathe at a glance
- breath
/breθ/ · noun
The air that goes into and out of your body.
- Take a deep breath and try to relax.
- I was out of breath after running for the bus.
- breathe
/briːð/ · verb
To take air into your body and let it out again.
- It's hard to breathe in this smoky room.
- Breathe in slowly through your nose.
How to remember it
The extra e on breathe makes the vowel long (/iː/) and turns the noun into the verb. Short word, short sound: breath. Longer word, longer sound: breathe.
Good to know
The th sound is different too: breath ends with /θ/ (as in think), breathe ends with /ð/ (as in this).
Common mistakes
Wrong: I couldn't breath because the room was so hot.
Right: I couldn't breathe because the room was so hot.
Wrong: She took a deep breathe before going on stage.
Right: She took a deep breath before going on stage.
Quick quiz
1.Hold your and go under the water.
2.Fish through their gills.
3.Just – everything is going to be fine.
Pick the right word for each gap.