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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

Individuals who develop symptoms of measles, including fever, cough, runny nose or a rash, should call their healthcare provider before arriving for care in person.

From Los Angeles Times Aug. 2, 2026

Net profit in the April-June period slumped 70 percent to £435 million compared with the 2025 second quarter after the company abandoned a chronic cough treatment, GSK said in an earnings statement.

From Barron's Jul. 28, 2026

Ten-year-old Francesca has a persistent cough and struggles to swallow.

From BBC Jul. 25, 2026

“It is English pronunciation that is crazy. Take three words: rough, cough, and dough. Excepting for their first letter, they are all spelled alike. But how are they pronounced?”

From "Carry On, Mr. Bowditch" by Jean Lee Latham

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

Measles is a highly contagious disease which is spread by coughs and sneezes or by touching things that someone with measles has coughed or sneezed on.

From BBC Feb. 15, 2026

The engine coughs and makes a ruh-ruh-ruh sound.

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

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

Last month, it coughed up a crucial game to Manchester City and briefly lost its grip on the title race—despite once holding a nine-point lead.

From The Wall Street Journal May 20, 2026

I felt a stab of pain whenever I coughed or sneezed.

From Slate Mar. 29, 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

Just then, the Gran broke into a coughing fit, sending the Uncle into a panic.

From "Witchlings" by Claribel A. Ortega




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