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sus·pire

(sə-spīr)

intr.v. sus·pired, sus·pir·ing, sus·pires

1. To breathe: "And from that one intake of fire / All creatures still warmly suspire" (Robert Frost).

2. To sigh.

[Middle English suspiren, to sigh, from Old French, from Latin suspīrāre : sub-, from below; see SUB- + spīrāre, to breathe.]

sus′pi·ration (sŭs′pə-rāshən) n.

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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