as in pauses
a momentary halt in an activity
took a breather from the seemingly endless task of sorting through years of stuff stored in the attic
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Recent Examples of breathers
Its one-take formula is made to break you — there are no breathers, the intensity simply keeps building to its apex.
—
Maggie Fremont, Vulture, 11 Dec. 2025
One is called the 'wonderful whimsy,' (with) fire breathers, jugglers, tarot card readers.
—Tony Peterson, CBS News, 10 Dec. 2025
While the games themselves won’t go away, one change may be the timing of them, especially the SEC’s late-season, collective breathers.
—Seth Emerson, New York Times, 19 Nov. 2025
Maggie Fremont, Vulture, 11 Dec. 2025
One is called the 'wonderful whimsy,' (with) fire breathers, jugglers, tarot card readers.
—Tony Peterson, CBS News, 10 Dec. 2025
While the games themselves won’t go away, one change may be the timing of them, especially the SEC’s late-season, collective breathers.
—Seth Emerson, New York Times, 19 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for breathers
Noun
-
Funding was eventually restored after a series of lawsuits that challenged payment pauses, eligibility requirements and requests from the federal government for sensitive citizen data.—
Dale Denwalt,
Oklahoman,
1 Feb. 2026
-
The president works in the first lady’s suggestion, and pauses, turns and points to her after delivering the line during his speech.—
CNN.com Wire Service,
Mercury News,
31 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Every squad is going to go through lulls in the conference schedule, other than perhaps UCLA.—
Sabreena Merchant,
New York Times,
16 Jan. 2026
-
The offense suffered some lulls in his absence, but second-year wide receiver Ryan Flournoy was able to pick up the production vacated by Lamb in the second half by finishing with 115 yards and one touchdown on nine receptions.—
Nick Harris,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
5 Dec. 2025
Noun
-
Similarly, the heart rate of a hibernating groundhog slows from about 80 beats per minute to just five, while breathing slows from around 16 breaths per minute to as few as two, according to the National Wildlife Federation.—
Kate Perez,
USA Today,
1 Feb. 2026
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Take six total breaths, allowing the lower ribs to expand outward with each inhale and gently draw inward with each exhale.—
Dana Santas,
CNN Money,
30 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
After the Aphex Twin nod, however, anyone who was into the harder end of hardcore breaks could attest that KAVARI’s original productions, heard in basements from Seoul to Vienna, were as electrifying as her edits.—
James Gui,
Pitchfork,
6 Feb. 2026
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But their fragile nature leaves them vulnerable to cracks and breaks.—
Michelle Mastro,
Martha Stewart,
6 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Breathers.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/breathers. Accessed 14 Feb. 2026.
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