Coughs
/kɒfs/noun
Third-person singular present or plural of cough, meaning to expel air suddenly and noisily from the lungs.
Did you know?The exact origin of English cough is uncertain, but it appears in Middle English forms like coughe and may be imitative of the sound itself, which makes it one of those words where the body and the language seem to mirror each other.
Etymological Timeline
Middle English
ME
coughen / coughe
“to cough”
Old English
OE
*cocian?
“no securely attested Old English ancestor is certain; earlier forms are unclear”
14th Century
English
cough
“a sudden expulsion of air from the lungs”
Modern English
English
coughs
“expels air suddenly and noisily from the lungs; or the plural form of cough”