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cough

[kawf, kof] / kɔf, kɒf /
NOUN
expelled air with sound
Synonyms




Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

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Sustained demand signals to airlines that passengers are willing to cough up the extra cash to secure a seat, said Peter Vlitas, executive vice president of partner relations for international travel brand Internova Travel Group.

From MarketWatch Aug. 12, 2026

Under intense US pressure to cough up more on security, Lai's government has vowed to increase defence spending to five percent of GDP by 2030.

From Barron's Aug. 5, 2026

The Southwest Utah Public Health Department stocks vaccines against measles, whooping cough, tetanus, hepatitis B, and other diseases.

From Los Angeles Times Jul. 28, 2026

And she said the hospital had treated her husband for whooping cough for six weeks when he was a child.

From BBC Jul. 22, 2026

Mr. Lemoncello pretended to cough, but his cough sounded a lot like “Ch-arles Ch-iltington.”

From "Mr. Lemoncello's Library Olympics" by Chris Grabenstein

The measles spreads easily through the air when an infected person breathes, talks, coughs or sneezes.

From Los Angeles Times Aug. 6, 2026

It had the power to soothe the roughest of sore throats and quiet the phlegmiest of coughs.

From Salon Jul. 19, 2026

Teenage boys have been drenching themselves and their surroundings in its scents for decades—and drawing complaints and choking coughs for just as long.

From The Wall Street Journal Feb. 22, 2026

TB is spread through the air when an infected person speaks, coughs or sings and a nearby person breathes in the germs.

From Los Angeles Times Feb. 3, 2026

Hard coughs agitated the old man; he spat into a handkerchief.

From "In Cold Blood" by Truman Capote

Around 20,000 years ago, a cave was home to generations of owls that regularly coughed up pellets containing the bones of their prey.

From Science Daily Jul. 5, 2026

Facing Djokovic in the semifinals of the Australian Open, Sinner coughed up a lead of two sets to one and lost in a 4-hour slog.

From The Wall Street Journal May 13, 2026

I loved it when someone coughed or a phone rang.

From Slate Apr. 12, 2026

Italy were well in the match but three times coughed up the ball within sight of the tryline to let France off.

From Barron's Feb. 22, 2026

“She said she's checking...the building,” coughed out a woman who'd escaped.

From "A Wish in the Dark" by Christina Soontornvat

Canadians and Americans who spent July coughing on smoke deserve better than a false diagnosis.

From The Wall Street Journal Aug. 12, 2026

"I felt very ill because I have asthma. I started coughing and I threw up," she told AFP at a gymnasium in the northern Madrid suburb of Alcobendas.

From Barron's Jul. 25, 2026

Since March, government figures show nearly 750 people, mostly children, have died from the highly contagious disease, which spreads easily through breathing, coughing or sneezing.

From BBC Jul. 8, 2026

But even after the studio won a bidding war for the story, it balked at coughing up the money for a movie worthy of Madonna’s legacy.

From Salon Jul. 8, 2026

She’s coughing so hard one of her knitting needles slides from her lap and clatters to the floor.

From "The Wrong Way Home" by Kate O’Shaughnessy




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