verb

sigh

seye

verb

To let out a long, audible breath, usually as a sign of tiredness, sadness, relief, or frustration.

"She sighed and put down the phone after another rejection."

"He sighed with relief when the plane finally landed."

noun

A long, audible breath let out to express tiredness, sadness, relief, or frustration.

"A deep sigh escaped him as he read the bad news."

How to Use Sigh

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishTo breathe out slowly and heavily, usually showing an emotion like tiredness or relief.

Common pairings

heave a sigh sigh of relief deep sigh

Word Forms

sighed past tense, sigh plural, sighed plural, sighs plural, sighs singular, sigh singular, sighed singular, sighest singular, sighedst singular, sigheth singular

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Can you complete this real example?

She _____ and put down the phone after another rejection.

Etymology

From Middle English sighen, related to Old English sīcan, ultimately from a root meaning "to breathe out".

Rhymes for sigh

high nigh weigh neigh thigh leigh Bligh sleigh Raleigh McVeigh outweigh Ashleigh

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