an utterance made by exhaling audibly
"She let out a deep sigh as she walked away from the noisy party."
A deep, prolonged audible inhale and exhale of breath; as when fatigued, frustrated, grieved, or relieved; the act of sighing.
"After hours of waiting in line without success, she let out a long sigh of relief before finally boarding the train."
In plain English: A sigh is an involuntary breath that someone takes when they feel sad, tired, or frustrated.
"She let out an audible sigh when she heard the bad news."
utter with a sigh
"She sighed heavily as she read the disappointing news about her flight cancellation."
To inhale a larger quantity of air than usual, and immediately expel it; to make a deep single audible respiration, especially as the result or involuntary expression of fatigue, exhaustion, grief, sorrow, frustration, or the like.
"After hours of waiting for his train, he let out a long sigh that echoed through the empty platform."
In plain English: To sigh is to breathe out loudly and slowly, usually because you are tired, sad, or frustrated.
"She sighed with relief when she finally found her lost keys."
Usage: Use "sigh" to describe a heavy exhalation that expresses emotions like frustration, relief, or exhaustion rather than just normal breathing. This word often pairs with verbs indicating emotional states, such as "she sighed in disappointment," to clarify why the breath was taken.
An expression of fatigue, exhaustion, grief, sorrow, frustration, or the like, often used in casual written contexts.
"After hours of waiting for the bus in the rain, she finally let out a long sigh and slumped against the wall."
The word "sigh" comes from Middle English and is actually a back-formation created by removing the "-t-" ending from an old past tense form of the verb meaning to become sick. This original connection between sickness and sighing has long been lost, leaving us with just the sound we make when letting out our breath.