be short of breath
be unable to breathe easily because you are ill, old etc

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

breathe [intransitive and transitive] to take air into your lungs and send it out again:
Mary knew he was asleep because he was breathing deeply.
He breathed the clear spring air.
sigh to breathe out slowly and make a noise that shows you are disappointed, tired, relieved etc:
She just sighed and shook her head.
‘Never mind,’ he sighed. ‘I’m sure there’ll be other opportunities.’
pant to breathe quickly and noisily through your mouth, because you have been using a lot of effort:
They were panting by the time they got to the finish line.
gasp to breathe very quickly and deeply and with difficulty:
Her eyes were wide, and she was gasping for breath.
‘Do you think you can walk?’ ‘I’ll try to,’ he gasped.
snore to breathe noisily while you are sleeping:
I couldn’t sleep because my husband was snoring.
wheeze to breathe with difficulty, making a noise in your throat and chest, because you are ill:
His asthma was making him wheeze.
be out of breath to be unable to breathe easily, especially because you have been running or doing other exercise:
I was out of breath by the time we reached the top of the hill.
be short of breath to be unable to breathe easily, especially because you are unhealthy:
Because she was so overweight, she was often short of breath.
give/let out a sigh
She let out a sigh of disappointment.
heave a sigh (=to sigh loudly and deeply)
Uncle Walter heaved a sigh and slumped back in his chair.
breathe a sigh of relief
When he had left, Miranda breathed a sigh of relief.
a deep sigh
Jimmy gave a deep sigh and shrugged.
a long sigh
With a long sigh, she tried to shake off her sombre mood.
a huge/great/big sigh
She heaved a great sigh.
a heavy sigh (=a big sad sigh)
Finally, she turned away from the mirror with a heavy sigh.
a little/small sigh
Quinn let out a little sigh and closed the book.
a weary sigh
With a weary sigh, she rubbed a hand over her eyes.
an audible sigh (=a sigh that can be heard)
Tonight she breathed an audible sigh of relief as the show ended.
a collective sigh (=a sigh that many people give at the same time)
She heard a collective sigh of relief as she announced her acceptance.
a sigh of relief/exasperation/satisfaction etc
At last the girl stopped eating and sat back with a sigh of satisfaction.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

short of breath
adj. Panting and wheezing.
He ran up six flights of stairs so rapidly that he was short of breath for several minutes.

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲