Apnoea

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A condition where breathing stops temporarily, often during sleep or due to medical causes
2. The temporary pause in respiration that can happen naturally or because of health issues
3. A brief interruption in the act of breathing, commonly occurring while asleep or from physiological reasons

Etymology: Apnoea is built from two Greek pieces. The prefix "a-" means "not" or "without," and "pnoea" comes from "pnoē," meaning "breathing" or "a blowing," from the verb "pnein," to breathe. Put together, the word literally means "without breathing," which fits its modern sense of a temporary pause in breathing. The Greek stem also has a close relative in English. "Pneumonia," "pneumatic," and "pneumatic" share the same root, "pneuma," meaning breath, wind, or spirit, which is why the Greeks linked breathing with the soul. Apnoea is one of the medical terms that drew on this classical vocabulary, rather than being a word that passed into English from everyday speech.

Synonyms: apnea, breathlessness, respiratory arrest

Antonyms: eupnoea, normal breathing