gasped; gasping; gasps
1
: to catch the breath convulsively and audibly (as with shock)
2
: to breathe laboriously
: to utter in a gasping manner
plural gasps
: an act of gasping : a sudden loud intake of breath with one's mouth because of surprise, shock, pain, etc.
He let out an audible gasp at the sight of the snake.
a gasp of surprise
His eyes looked wild and strange from the fever; he trembled continuously, and each breath he took sounded like a gasp for life.—
Robert C. O'Brien
Robert C. O'BrienIn the next hour Lemieux drew gasps from the crowd half a dozen more times …—E. M. Swift
E. M. SwiftSynonyms
Examples of gasp in a Sentence
Verb
Mom gasped in surprise at the sight of my sister's new haircut.
He gasped as he stepped into the icy water.
a dying man gasping for breath
She was gasping for air.
Recent Examples on the Web
Adam Iscoe, The New Yorker, 9 Dec. 2024
The crowd gasped as smoke from red and gold fireworks filled the air.
—Thuc Nhi Nguyen, Los Angeles Times, 9 Dec. 2024
Julian Chokkattu, WIRED, 5 Dec. 2024
Wear this turtleneck with these wide-leg jeans for an easy outfit; go for gasps in that ruched top or long, textured topcoat.
—Jake Henry Smith, Glamour, 29 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for gasp 
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Verb
Spectators in the gallery cried and gasped, as Neely’s legs flailed about and then slowed down and stopped moving altogether before Penny released his hold on Neely’s neck and got up, fifty-one seconds later.
—Adam Iscoe, The New Yorker, 9 Dec. 2024
The crowd gasped as smoke from red and gold fireworks filled the air.
—Thuc Nhi Nguyen, Los Angeles Times, 9 Dec. 2024
Noun
If someone lets out a big sigh or gasps, these will now be captioned as [sighs] or [gasps], respectively.
—Julian Chokkattu, WIRED, 5 Dec. 2024
Wear this turtleneck with these wide-leg jeans for an easy outfit; go for gasps in that ruched top or long, textured topcoat.
—Jake Henry Smith, Glamour, 29 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for gasp
Dictionary Entries Near gasp
Cite this Entry
“Gasp.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gasp. Accessed 21 Dec. 2024.
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