expectorate

Etymology

From Latin expectorātus, past participle of expectorāre (“only fig. banish from the mind, but literally (as in modern use) expel from the breast”), from ex (“out of”) + pectus (“the breast”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɪkˈspɛktəɹeɪt/

• Audio (US)

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Verb

expectorate (third-person singular simple present expectorates, present participle expectorating, simple past and past participle expectorated)

1. To cough up fluid from the lungs.
2. To spit.

Further reading

• expectorate in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
• expectorate in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911
• expectorate at OneLook Dictionary Search