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indrawing

indrawing

1 8.5
The chest moving inward when someone struggles to breathe
  • noun
  • /ˈɪnˌdrɔɪŋ/
  • Specialized
: retracción
  • During the examination, the nurse recorded the indrawing of his abdomen as a sign of respiratory distress.

Examples

  • The doctor noticed the indrawing of the child's chest while he was examining her breathing.

  • She heard the sudden, harsh indrawing of his breath as she touched his mouth with hers.

    Fiction book (1995)
  • Still, he resisted, but the sudden harsh indrawing of his breath told her all she needed to know.

    Fiction book (1995)
  • The patient was in distress, and the indrawing of his breath indicated a possible blockage in his airway.

Antonyms

301 3.3

An increase in size, amount, or range

Surface Forms

indrawing singular
indrawings plural

Morphology

indrawing = indraw (transparent) = in + draw + ing

The noun is a regular action/result nominalization from 'indraw', meaning the act of drawing inward.

Etymology

The word indrawing comes from the prefix in- meaning 'into' and the verb draw meaning 'to pull', so imagine something being 'pulled in'. That's why indrawing describes the chest moving inward during breathing, often a sign of breathing trouble.