aspiration

UK: /ˌæspɪˈreɪʃ^ən/ US: /ˌæspəˈreɪʃən/ ,(as′pə rā′shən)

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025

as•pi•ra•tion /ˌæspəˈreɪʃən/   n. 

1. a strong desire;
   ambition;
   goal:
   [countable] The presidency had been her aspiration since college.
2. Phonetics the pronouncing of a speech sound accompanied by a puff of breath:
   [uncountable] English sounds like p,t, or k at the beginning of words have aspiration.
3. Medicine [uncountable]
   • the act of removing a fluid from the body with a hollow needle with suction.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

as•pi•ra•tion  (as′pə rā′shən), n. 

1. strong desire, longing, or aim;
   ambition:
   intellectual aspirations.
2. a goal or objective desired:
   The presidency is the traditional aspiration of young American boys.
3. act of aspirating;
   breath.
4. Phonetics
   • articulation accompanied by an audible puff of breath, as in the h-sound of how, or of when (hwen), or in the release of initial stops, as in the k-sound of key.
   • the use of an aspirate in pronunciation.
5. Medicine
   • the act of removing a fluid, as pus or serum, from a cavity of the body, by a hollow needle or trocar connected with a suction syringe.
   • the act of inhaling fluid or a foreign body into the bronchi and lungs, often after vomiting.

• Latin aspīrātiōn- (stem of aspīrātiō). See aspirate, -ion
• Middle French)
• late Middle English (1375–1425

as′pi•ra′tion•al, adj. 
Synonyms

• 1. yearning, craving.

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

aspiration / ˌæspɪˈreɪʃən/ noun

1. strong desire to achieve something, such as success
2. the aim of such desire
3. the act of breathing
4. the pronunciation of a stop with an audible and forceful release of breath
5. an aspirated consonant
6. removal of air or fluid from a body cavity by suction
7. the sucking of fluid or foreign matter into the air passages of the body
8. the removal of air or fluid from the body by suction

ˌaspiˈrational adjective

aspiratory / əˈspaɪrətərɪ -trɪ ˈæspɪrətərɪ -trɪ/ adjective