heave
1
4.6
- noun
- /hiːv/
:
vaivén
- The heave of the swells distorted his vision; he could see little more than shadows and shifting fingers of light.
- great heave
Examples
-
His breath comes in short, gasping heaves.
Fiction book (1991) -
The heaves were strong enough to make my sides sore.
Blog text (11) -
By now they are panting; each breath is a heave, a gasp.
Fiction book (1993) -
Nettie Lee watched her belly rise and fall in great heaves, imagining the baby turning inside.
Fiction book (1994) -
But when we cut through the long swells, there is no shudder or vibration—only a gentle elastic heave.
Fiction book (1992) -
The dancer's movements included a graceful heave that captivated the audience.
-
With each wave that crashed, there was a rhythmic heave of the ocean against the shore.
-
As the hot air balloon lifted off, I felt a gentle heave as it rose into the sky.
Synonyms
1
5.0
An up and down movement, for example of waves or a crowd
Antonyms
Idioms
Compounds
How Big
Surface Forms
Etymology
Heave as a noun comes from the old English hebban 'to lift', so the heave of a ship or wave is the rising and falling 'movement' you feel on board or at sea.