How to Use cough in a Sentence

cough

1 of 2 verb
Definition of coughnext
Synonyms for coughnext
  • The dust made him cough.
  • The engine coughed and sputtered and then stopped.
  • She was coughing and sneezing all day.
  • Why stop with the right to cough on strangers in a public place and give them a disease?
    — Michael Tomasky, The New Republic, 6 Dec. 2021
  • The boy was coughing and struggling to breathe, the complaint says.
    — Marlene Lenthang, NBC News, 5 Dec. 2023
  • The pope sounded short of breath, coughed at one point and appeared in poor health.
    — Claudio Lavanga, NBC News, 27 Nov. 2023
  • Before intervening, give the child the chance to cough out the food.
    — Lauren Harrison, baltimoresun.com/maryland/carroll, 3 Apr. 2021
  • People would even cough at them and shout racial slurs.
    — Sean Collins, Dallas News, 6 Apr. 2021
  • Takes off his mask to cough and blow his nose, at which point Larry leaves him by the side of the road.
    — Kara Baskin, BostonGlobe.com, 12 Feb. 2021
  • His muscles are no longer strong enough to cough on his own.
    — Dana Hunsinger Benbow, The Indianapolis Star, 11 June 2021
  • One woman went as far as to cough in the other’s face during the brawl.
    — Gabrielle Russon, orlandosentinel.com, 30 Dec. 2020
  • Surveillance footage shows the suspect walk to the stroller, lean over and cough two to three times in the baby’s face.
    — Anna Bauman, SFChronicle.com, 22 June 2020
  • The hoarding of remedies isn’t limited to cough medicine and lozenges.
    — David Pierson, New York Times, 13 Dec. 2022
  • Qianyan Li, his wife and his children’s mother, would cook in the apartment and his son would cough.
    — Ryan Kost, San Francisco Chronicle, 23 Nov. 2021
  • Ozone can burn the inside of your lungs, causing discomfort in the throat and coughing.
    — Vivian La, Chicago Tribune, 27 June 2023
  • That’s when Mohan, who was in his early 40s, began to cough.
    — Washington Post, 17 June 2021
  • Throughout the press conference, Rudy Giuliani used the same cloth to cough into and wipe his face.
    — Tyler Van Dyke, Washington Examiner, 20 Nov. 2020
  • Well, not coughing, more like throwing up, or trying to throw up.
    — John Kelly, Washington Post, 29 July 2023
  • These people never cough or sneeze, which are the virus’ main modes of transportation.
    — Katherine Ellen Foley, Quartz, 9 June 2020
  • Teach them to cough and sneeze into their elbows rather than into their hands.
    — New York Times, 26 Feb. 2021
  • The pipes in the restrooms – perhaps the original fixtures – coughed and complained.
    — Sam McManis, Sacramento Bee, 30 Jan. 2024
  • Her daughters were coughing, and smoke flooded into the house when Vailoces opened the front door.
    — Kyle Melnick, Washington Post, 18 Aug. 2023
  • The virus is dispersed by microscopic droplets in the air when people cough, sneeze, sing or talk.
    — Bloomberg.com, 7 June 2020
  • The case was made that the horse was accidentally exposed to cough medicine by a groom that had the coronavirus.
    — John Cherwa, Los Angeles Times, 7 Dec. 2020
  • Surveillance video appears to show the suspect walk to the stroller, lower her face mask and cough two to three times toward the 1-year-old child’s face.
    — Matt Kawahara, SFChronicle.com, 25 June 2020
  • During this time, people can spread the virus to others through sneezing and coughing.
    — Nick Blackmer, Verywell Health, 11 Dec. 2023
  • Cover your mouth when coughing or sneezing to lower the risk of spreading germs.
    — Christin Perry, Parents, 19 Aug. 2023
  • The particles are tiny enough to get deep into the lungs and cause short-term problems like coughing and itchy eyes, and in the long run, can affect the lungs and heart.
    — Maryclaire Dale, Anchorage Daily News, 18 July 2023
  • Most kids sick with RSV are stuffed up with congestion, and are coughing and wheezing.
    — Erika Edwards, NBC News, 17 Nov. 2023
  • A lot of people can't tolerate it and will be coughing and sneezing all day.
    — Li Cohen, CBS News, 7 June 2023
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cough

2 of 2 noun
  • I heard a cough from the back of the church.
  • He has a cough and a cold.
  • They both have bad coughs.
  • Your—or your child—have a runny nose, fever, and cough.
    — Byerin Prater, Fortune Well, 3 Mar. 2023
  • Some people who catch RSV can have a cough that lasts a few weeks.
    — Alyssa Hui, Verywell Health, 24 Oct. 2023
  • All of a sudden, Kota coughs once, and then once again.
    — Bryan Washington, The New Yorker, 29 Aug. 2023
  • Symptoms of the virus include fever, cough, eye and nose discharge, swelling of the paw pads and more.
    — Mary Lebus, The Enquirer, 7 Apr. 2023
  • And a chronic cough is one that persists longer than 12 weeks.
    — The Conversation, Fortune, 13 Feb. 2023
  • Symptoms include a high fever, cough, runny nose and a rash all over the body.
    — Nicholas Rice, Peoplemag, 24 Feb. 2024
  • In other words, cough pearls numb your airways to calm the cough reflex.
    — Ayana Underwood, SELF, 7 Feb. 2024
  • Symptoms can include a high fever, cough, runny nose and a rash all over the body.
    — Jordan Greene, Peoplemag, 11 Jan. 2024
  • The ones that come after days of misery for your child: the fever, the cough, the runny nose, and trouble breathing.
    — Emily Nadal, Parents, 20 July 2023
  • Krayzie Bone: That weekend, my cough had increased a lot.
    — Kyle Eustice, SPIN, 12 Dec. 2023
  • The way to handle an untimely laugh is to cup your hand over your mouth and pass it off as a cough.
    — Jacobina Martin, Washington Post, 17 Oct. 2023
  • The illness' past hallmarks, such as a dry cough or the loss of sense of taste or smell, have become less common.
    — Aria Bendix, NBC News, 16 Sep. 2023
  • And the door is now open for more companies with bridging solutions (*cough* Lutron) to get in the game.
    — Jennifer Pattison Tuohy, The Verge, 6 Sep. 2023
  • Keep reading to learn more about dry coughs, from they really are to the best dry cough remedies for kids.
    — Nicole Harris, Parents, 10 July 2023
  • Symptoms can include cough, shortness of breath, headache, and fever.
    — Nathan Diller, USA TODAY, 22 Feb. 2023
  • Symptoms may include cough, shortness of breath, headache and fever.
    — Nathan Diller, USA TODAY, 25 Aug. 2023
  • Measles can be identified by a fever, a cough, red eyes, and as the disease progresses, a rash.
    — Elizabeth B. Kim, The Enquirer, 18 Mar. 2024
  • Some dogs have died from the illness, which starts with causes a cough that can last for weeks, runny eyes and sneezing.
    — Linda Carroll, NBC News, 22 Nov. 2023
  • That's because when a baby lies on their back, mucus drips down the nasal passages to the back of the throat and sets off a cough response to keep the fluid out of the lungs.
    — Rebecca Stewart, Parents, 21 Dec. 2023
  • Symptoms may include fever, cough, runny nose, watery eyes and a rash of red spots.
    — Mira Cheng, CNN, 1 Mar. 2024
  • The most common symptoms were extreme tiredness or fatigue, brain fog and a cough that won’t go away.
    — Karen Kaplan, Los Angeles Times, 14 Mar. 2023
  • The most common symptoms of the flu are cough, fever, chills, body aches, sore throat, fatigue, nausea and vomiting.
    — Nick Blackmer, Verywell Health, 9 Nov. 2023
  • Having indoor allergies can leave you with red, itchy eyes or a cough.
    — Kayla Hui, Mph, Verywell Health, 5 July 2023
  • The early stage of COPD may begin with an annoying cough that won’t subside.
    — Sherry Christiansen Updated, Verywell Health, 5 Nov. 2023
  • Symptoms are the similar to that of other flus, including cough, body aches and fever.
    — Mike Stobbe, Chron, 18 Feb. 2023
  • But the real match made in heaven was the one between Mal and Lexi, who remain besties (cough, cough, get together, please).
    — Charlotte Walsh, Vulture, 14 Mar. 2024
  • Like Gleizes’s symptoms, Dora’s were numerous, and included a cough and the loss of her voice.
    — Hannah Zeavin, The New Yorker, 14 Sep. 2023

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'cough.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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