Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- v. To exhale audibly in a long deep breath, as in weariness or relief.
- v. To emit a similar sound: willows sighing in the wind.
- v. To feel longing or grief; yearn: sighing for their lost youth.
- v. To express with or as if with an audible exhalation.
- v. Archaic To lament.
- n. The act or sound of sighing.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- To heave or draw a sigh (see sigh, n.); make an audible inspiration and expiration indicative of some emotion; make an expressive respiratory sound: as, to sigh with grief or disappointment, or (less commonly) from satisfaction or the sense of relief.
- Hence To experience an oppressive mental sensation; yearn or long, as from a special access of emotion or desire: often with for: as, to sigh for the good old times.
- To make a sound resembling or suggestive of a sigh; sound with gentle or subdued mournfulness: said of things, especially the wind and its effects.
- To emit, use, or act upon or in regard to with sighs or in sighing; utter, express, lament, etc., with sighing utterance or feeling: used poetically with much latitude: as, to sigh out one's love, pleasure, or grief.
- n. A sudden involuntary deep-drawn inspiration of breath, followed by its more or less audible expiration, usually expressive of some emotion or sensation: as, a sigh of grief, chagrin, relief, pleasure, or fatigue.
- See sie.
- A Middle English preterit of see.
Wiktionary
- n. A deep and prolonged audible inspiration or respiration of air, as when fatigued, frustrated, grieved, or relieved; the act of sighing.
- n. Figuratively, a manifestation of grief; a lament.
- n. Cockney rhyming slang A person who is bored.
- v. intransitive 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.
- v. intransitive To lament; to grieve.
- v. intransitive To utter sighs over; to lament or mourn over.
- v. intransitive To experience an emotion associated with sighing.
- v. intransitive To make a sound like sighing.
- v. transitive To exhale (the breath) in sighs.
- v. transitive To express by sighs; to utter in or with sighs.
- v. transitive, archaic To utter sighs over; to lament or mourn over.
- interj. An expression of fatigue, exhaustion, grief, sorrow, frustration, or the like, often used in casual written contexts.
GNU Webster's 1913
- v. 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, or the like.
- v. Hence, to lament; to grieve.
- v. To make a sound like sighing.
- v. To exhale (the breath) in sighs.
- v. To utter sighs over; to lament or mourn over.
- v. To express by sighs; to utter in or with sighs.
- n. A deep and prolonged audible inspiration or respiration of air, as when fatigued or grieved; the act of sighing.
- n. Figuratively, a manifestation of grief; a lan�ent.
WordNet 3.0
- v. heave or utter a sigh; breathe deeply and heavily
- v. utter with a sigh
- n. a sound like a person sighing
- n. an utterance made by exhaling audibly
Etymologies
- Middle English sihen, from Old English sīcan (Wiktionary)
- Middle English sighen, probably back-formation from sighte, past tense of siken, to sigh, from Old English sīcan. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“Im gonna have to sigh here... *sigh*... because as usual, New York's there and it's tiny, ignored neighbor, New Jersey, is not...”
“I have to take back my words * hangs head in shame* I reali dun bloody believe this but * sigh sigh* WE GOT IN ..”
“The original reading is, not a _spendthrift's_ sigh, but a _spendthrift_ sigh; a _sigh_ that makes an unnecessary waste of the vital flame.”
“*nawt sure iffin et iz a “tummy-iz-beli-ful” sigh, oar a “yeah-wintur-iz-heer” sigh, butt! et iz a big sigh*”
Video: Ninja Kitteh Does A Fence Jump - Lolcats 'n' Funny Pictures of Cats - I Can Has Cheezburger?
“He could feel the collective sigh from the attendants.”
Superhero Nation: how to write superhero novels and comic books » Call’s Review Forum
“If you read these three books you won't need me, sigh is the next entry in this blog.”
“When blushing Love first breathes its virgin sigh,”
“A creak; a sigh; is it just the evening breeze, or something more sinister?”
“Human†¦ I see human long time ago. †The small lie caught a sigh from the hunter, and when the man stood he kicked the little guy in the side.”
365 tomorrows » 2006 » January : A New Free Flash Fiction SciFi Story Every Day
“Some of the earnings seem to be coming in OK, so I think there is clearly some sort of short-term sigh of relief here," said David Reilly, director of portfolio strategies at Rydex Investments.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘sigh’.
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EN - pseudo-English words
English words used by foreigners in a different sense than they would be used by native speakers + madeupical "English" words that sound English but are not recognized as such by native speakers of...
top, spa, sig, DM, box, videobar, vest, tutor, polo, touringcar, topfit, abseiling and 263 more...
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SMILE and other emotive verbs
Single verbs that describe expression or emotional reaction. "He __ed" (smiled/gulped/scoffed...)
smile, beam, sneer, scoff, giggle, laugh, snigger, scowl, grin, leer, wince, grimace and 97 more...
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Onomatopoetic
words (seemingly) formed in imitation of a natural sound
plash, guff, woof, splash, crash, pow, crack, bang, whoosh, whizz, whallop, fizz and 116 more...
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Sounds
words that describe sound
atchoo, atishoo, babble, bam, bay, beep, blast, blather, bleat, bleep, blip, bong and 242 more...
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sound (quiet)
words for quiet sounds
( randomness, descriptive )sigh, murmur, whisper, whir, rustle, patter, hum, snap, hiss(sss), crackle, bleat, peep and 185 more...
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Figuratively
Words with definitions containing "figuratively."
spore, plunge, fulminate, rasp, hinge, niche, breathe, approach, hammer, rain, butcher, dazzle and 132 more...
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The Pain of Texting
Words that are a pain in the ass to type in on a numerical keypad on a cell phone because they have consecutive letters that share the same button:
2 - ABC
3 - DEF
4 - GHI...defcon, hi, no, attitude, xylophone, on, monday, monkey, mono, dig, back, babble and 212 more...
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Words
Just words!
enjoyed, quiet breath, my jacket torn to..., daze, missing angel juan, had, there are these t..., called, buffalo, sun, word, words and 14 more...
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Sorrow is better than laughter; for b...
lachrymose, sorrow, melancholic, wail, mournful, sob, misery, wretchedness, anguish, agony, heartbreak, lament and 38 more...
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Words of seduction
nibble, caress, writhing, whisper, penetrate, lick, flushed, passionate, embrace, nudity, intimacy, tempt and 17 more...
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Used poetically
A list of words with definitions containing the phrase "used poetically."
nepenthes, sigh, mysterious, Albion, linden, glaive, herald, gladness, alway, gules, Tyrrhenian, begat and 2 more...
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Pretty Words
Pretty words that also have pretty meanings. They're special...add your own prettiness.
ethereal, ephemeral, scintillating, chortle, murmur, sigh, burblewall
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♥
ambrosia, inamorata, gossamer, lily-white, hummingbird, roucoulement, poppy, daisy, calypso, lunula, lamb, dove and 1526 more...
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sort of sexy
pressure, press, urgency, squeezing, influence, compel, push, tease, thrust, full, drive, urge on and 99 more...
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Twitter favorites
The new favourite words of people on Twitter.
A script searches Twitter for "X is my new favorite word" and adds it to this list.
See also:
grabbable, retuiteando, leaving, fantastic, absolutely, kurwa, hella, ridic, underpass, hate, interlude, plush and 2369 more... -
Just 'cause I like 'em, S
scrunch, solace, sabotage, saccade, sacerdotal, sacrilegious, sacristy, snappy, skew, steadfast, scowl, scorch and 781 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for sigh.

PossibleUnderscore Sorry. Next time I'll wait until you're ready. Dec 2, 2009
reesetee I haven't. Why, I've barely had time to unbecupcake myself. Dec 2, 2009
PossibleUnderscore becupcakes reesetee. (who(m?) I think still hasn't gotten over the last becupcaking from the trebuchet)
*sigh*
Farewell cupcakes, farewell pig. Dec 1, 2009
reesetee That's what they all say. Dec 1, 2009
PossibleUnderscore *becupcakes marsupial as he scampers away*
Mind your own business! It wasn't my fault my pig found my store of alcohol! He was dying anyway I tell you!
Dec 1, 2009
bilby *Mulls - Do I want to know what expertise Undies has with drunk and dying pigs?*
*runs* Dec 1, 2009
PossibleUnderscore What is wrong with the third pronunciation from 'Onomatopoeia'? It sounds like a drunk and dying pig. Dec 1, 2009
chained_bear Hey! It's a party!!
*blaring trumpets* Dec 18, 2008
reesetee *runs into room with clashing cymbals*
Does that help? Dec 18, 2008
Telofy And for me most of you guys and she-guys have unfavorable timezones... Dec 18, 2008
chained_bear Wordie is quiet today. *sigh* Dec 18, 2008
bilby Try this. Apr 3, 2008
Prolagus Skipvia,
which list? Apr 3, 2008
skipvia Indeed, a beautiful and very evocative word that finally prompted me to create this list of similarly powerful, small words. Additions are welcome. Nov 4, 2007
sonofgroucho Isn't this a nice little word? Ahhhhhhh!! Nov 4, 2007