Emily Dickinson Lexicon

breath (-s), n. [OE 'odor,' 'smell,' 'exhalation from cooking or burning'.] (webplay: air, breathing, flies, freely, give, instant, Life, man, motion, power, sea, smiles, summer's, surface, time, wind, word).

1. Existence; life force; (see Job 27:3).
2. Moment; brief time; single respiration.
3. Pattern of inhalation and exhalation; interchange of air through the lungs.
4. Wind; air currents; forces of the atmosphere.
5. Word; speech; discourse; language; communication; (see Psalms 33:6); [fig.] poetry.
6. Mortality; earthly state.
7. Respiration; [fig.] life; animation; vitality.
8. Sob; cry; lament; expression of grief; (see Lamentations 3:56).
9. Effort; endeavor; exertion; attempt.
10. Pain; agony; spasm; throe; expression of anguish.
11. Period; stage; phase; manifestation; expression; aspect.
12. Phrase. “Hold … breath”: freeze; become still; cease moving; no longer appear.
13. Phrase. “Out of breath”: windy; breezy; blustery; breathing out deeply; [fig.] exhausted; spent because of exertion.

breathe (-d, -s, breathing), v. [see breath, n.] (webplay: accent, air, breath, breathing-place, expire, greyhounds, live, Lord God, lungs, open, pause, spirit, vein, vital, vow).

1. Whisper; utter softly; speak privately; [fig.] confide; make known.
2. Inhale and exhale; process air through the lungs; [fig.] live; subsist; (see Joshua 11:11).
3. Exist; show life force; [fig.] purr; yowl; make vibrant animal sounds.
4. Absorb; assimilate; internalize; infuse; gather.
5. Gasp; draw in air; respond with admiration.
6. Flutter; flicker; waver; hover; palpitate; [fig.] betray; vacillate; be unfaithful.
7. Share; experience; partake of; have in common.
8. Inhale deeply; rest from action; recover from panic.
9. Circulate; disperse; mobilize; pass around; cause to move.
10. Speak; communicate; express truth; transmit knowledge; (see John 20:22); [fig.] commune.

breathing, verbal adj. [see breath, n.] (webplay: breath, vein, vital).

Living; alive; vital; [fig.] physical; earthly; mortal.

breathing, verbal n. [see breath, n.] (webplay: open, spirit, vitality).

1. Gasp; hyperventilation; respiration; sudden inhalation of air; [fig.] nervousness; anxiety; feeling of caution; sign of fear.
2. Existing; living; surviving; enduring; abiding.

breathless, adj. [see breath, n.]

1. Unearthly; eternal; timeless; not mortal; [fig.] active; racing; rapid; speedy; in a hurry.
2. Not exhaling; holding in air; unable to breathe freely; [fig.] pendulous; suspended; full of anticipation; paralyzed from emotion.

bred, v. [see breed, v.]

breed (-s, bred), v. [OE 'warmth, hatching, fostering heat'.]

1. Raise; bring up; [word play on “broad”] amplify; elevate; expand; magnify; enable to grow.
2. Ferment; multiply; seethe; smolder; spawn; proliferate; propagate; [word play on “breathes”] live; survive; exist; persist; (see Exodus 16:20).

breeze (-s), n. [OSp brise.] (webplay: common, day, flies, land, light, mist, morn, night, sea, shifting, sound, summer, time, wind).

1. Horse-fly; flying insect; bug of the Tabanus genus; [fig.] Comforter; Holy Spirit.
2. Light wind; gentle gale.
3. Gust; mild storm; natural purifier; current of fresh air; [personification] housekeeper; cleaning person.
4. Higher power; life force; [personification] queen; royal lady; Mother Nature.
5. Rustle; flutter; flicker; noise of leaves moving in the air.
6. Perfume; scent; fragrance; aroma; wafted smell.
7. Flux; flow of air; [fig.] soaring bird.
8. Zephyr; [personification] muse; wind spirit.
9. Inspiration; stimulation; motivation; cheering influence.
10. Whisper; gossip.

bretheren (brethren), n. [see brother, n.]

brevity, n. [AFr < L. 'short'; see brief, adj.] (webplay: life).

Youth; childhood; quickly passing season; relatively short lifetime; [fig.] mortality; ephemeral being; transitory creature.