World Languages Lexicon
10 Language-to-English DictionariesCough
/kɒf/Comprehensive Definitions & Senses
2 senses- 1
A sudden, forceful expulsion of air from the lungs, often accompanied by a characteristic sound.
"He had a persistent cough that lasted for weeks."
- 1
To expel air from the lungs suddenly with a harsh noise.
"She coughed loudly to clear her throat before speaking."
Thesaurus & Semantic Spectrum
Linguistic Origin & Historical Etymology
Derived from Middle English 'coughen', of imitative origin related to Middle High German 'kuchhon' and Dutch 'kuchen'. The term echoes the harsh respiratory sound it describes, evolving consistently in Germanic languages over centuries to denote both the action and the resulting vocalization.
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10 Global Lexicons: How "Cough" is said worldwide
Click any language below to open its dedicated Language to English dictionary page with native script & transliteration
toux
Transliteration: tu
"Il a une toux persistante."
Husten
Transliteration: ˈhʊstn̩
"Er hat einen hartnäckigen Husten."
tosse
Transliteration: ˈtos.se
"Ha una tosse persistente."
tos
Transliteration: tos
"Él tiene una tos persistente."
tosse
Transliteration: ˈtɔ.zi
"Ele tem uma tosse persistente."
खांसी
Transliteration: khānsī
"उसे लगातार खांसी हो रही है।"
咳嗽
Transliteration: késòu
"他有持续的咳嗽。"
기침
Transliteration: gichim
"그는 지속적인 기침이 있다."
咳
Transliteration: seki
"彼は持続的な咳をしています。"
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