pant

See also: Pant and pant-

English

Pronunciation

• enPR: pănt, IPA^(key): /pænt/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ænt

Etymology 1

From Middle English panten, whence also English dialectal pank.

Possibly from Old French pantoyer, a byform or of Old French pantoisier (“to be breathless”) (compare modern French panteler (“to gasp for breath”)), of uncertain origin. Possibly from Vulgar Latin *pantasiō (“struggling for breath when having a nightmare”), from Ancient Greek φαντασιόω (phantasióō, “I am subject to hallucinations”), from φαντασία (phantasía, “appearance, image, fantasy”).

Noun

pant (plural pants)

1. A quick breathing; a catching of the breath; a gasp.
2. (figuratively) Eager longing.
   • 1995, John C. Leggett, Suzanne Malm, The Eighteen Stages of Love (page 9)

     Indeed, the projections, cravings, and everyday frolics common to trysts among buzz-activist Hollywood stars and starlets, plus their many common folk imitators, go forward with eager pant.

3. (obsolete) A violent palpitation of the heart.
   • c. 1606–1607, William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Anthonie and Cleopatra”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies: Published According to the True Originall Copies (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, OCLC 606515358, [Act IV, scene viii], page 360, column 2:

     To this great fairy I'll commend thy acts, / Make her thanks bless thee. O thou day o' the world, / Chain mine arm'd neck; leap thou, attire and all; / Through proof of harness to my heart, and there / Ride on the pants triumphing.

Translations

a quick breathing

• Bulgarian: задъхване n (zadǎhvane), пъхтене n (pǎhtene)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 呼吸 (zh), 急喘（jichuan)

• Dutch: gehijg (nl)
• Esperanto: anhelo
• Finnish: huohotus (fi), puuskutus (fi)
• French: halètement (fr) m
• Galician: ampeo m, alasamento m
• German: keuchen (de)
• Icelandic: más
• Italian: ansito m, anelito (it) m, palpito (it) m, respiro affannoso m, fiatone (it) m

• Japanese: 息切れ (いきぎれ, ikigire)
• Maori: whakaaeaeā, kahekahe
• Portuguese: ofego m, arfagem f
• Russian: пыхте́ние (ru) n (pyxténije), оды́шка (ru) f (odýška) (dyspnea)
• Scottish Gaelic: plosg m, plosgadh m
• Spanish: jadeo (es) m
• Swedish: flämtning c
• Tagalog: paghingal

a violent palpitation of the heart

• Bulgarian: силно сърцебиене (silno sǎrcebiene)
• Finnish: läpätys (fi)
• Galician: latexo (gl) m, arfada f
• Italian: palpito (it) m, pulsazione (it) f, tachicardia (it) f, batticuore (it) m, palpitazione (it) f, cardiopalmo (it)

• Scottish Gaelic: plosg m, plosgadh m
• Spanish: palpitación f

References

• pant in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• Douglas Harper, “pant”, in Online Etymology Dictionary, 2001–2021.

Verb

pant (third-person singular simple present pants, present participle panting, simple past and past participle panted)

1. (transitive, intransitive) To breathe quickly or in a labored manner, as after exertion or from eagerness or excitement; to respire with heaving of the breast; to gasp.
   • 1697, “(please specify the book number)”, in John Dryden, transl., The Works of Virgil: Containing His Pastorals, Georgics, and Æneis. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], OCLC 403869432:

     Pluto pants for breath from out his cell.

   • 1820, Percy Bysshe Shelley, Prometheus Unbound

     There is a cavern where my spirit / Was panted forth in anguish.

   • 1749, [John Cleland], “(Please specify the letter or volume)”, in Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure [Fanny Hill], London: […] G. Fenton [i.e., Fenton and Ralph Griffiths] […], OCLC 731622352:

     Charles had just slipp'd the bolt of the door, and running, caught me in his arms, and lifting me from the ground, with his lips glew'd to mine, bore me, trembling, panting, dying, with soft fears and tender wishes, to the bed

2. (intransitive) To long eagerly; to desire earnestly.
   • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], OCLC 964384981, Psalms 42:1:

     As the hart panteth after the water brooks.

   • 1733-1738, Alexander Pope, Imitations of Horace:

     Who pants for glory finds but short repose.

3. (transitive, obsolete) To long for (something); to be eager for (something).
   • 1633, George Herbert, Love

     Then shall our hearts pant thee.

4. (intransitive) Of the heart, to beat with unnatural violence or rapidity; to palpitate.
   • 1590, Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Qveene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for VVilliam Ponsonbie, OCLC 960102938, book 1, canto 7:

     Yet might her piteous heart be seen to pant and quake

5. (intransitive) To sigh; to flutter; to languish.
   • 1709 May, Alexander Pope, “Pastorals. The Fourth Pastoral, or Daphne. […]”, in Poetical Miscellanies: The Sixth Part. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], OCLC 1029666000, page 750:

     [T]he whiſp'ring Breeze / Pants on the Leaves, and dies upon the Trees.

6. (intransitive) To heave, as the breast.
7. (intransitive) To bulge and shrink successively, of iron hulls, etc.

Synonyms

• (breathe quickly or in a labored manner): gasp
• (long for): crave, desire, long for, pine for
• (long eagerly): crave, desire, long, pine
• (of the heart, to beat with unnatural violence): palpitate, pound, throb

Translations

to breathe quickly or in a labored manner

• Bulgarian: пъхтя (bg) (pǎhtja), задъхвам се (zadǎhvam se)
• Catalan: panteixar (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 喘氣 (zh), 喘气 (zh) (chuǎnqì), 喘息 (zh) (chuǎnxí), 氣喘吁吁 (zh), 气喘吁吁 (zh) (qìchuǎnxūxū)

• Dutch: hijgen (nl)
• Esperanto: anheli (eo)
• Finnish: huohottaa, läähättää (fi), puuskuttaa (fi)
• French: haleter (fr)
• Galician: abarquiñar (gl), acorar (gl), arfar (gl), alasar (gl), ampear (gl)
• German: hecheln (de), keuchen (de), schnaufen (de)
• Greek: αγκομαχάω (el) (agkomacháo), λαχανιάζω (el) (lachaniázo)

  Ancient Greek: ἀσπαίρω (aspaírō)

• Hungarian: liheg (hu), zihál (hu)
• Icelandic: mása
• Italian: ansare (it), ansimare (it), boccheggiare (it)
• Japanese: 喘ぐ (ja) (あえぐ, aegu)

• Latin: anhēlō
• Luxembourgish: hechelen
• Maori: kahekahe, kuhakuha, whakahotuhotu, huatare, whakaaeaea, taretare, tūngāngā, kihakiha
• Persian: رخیدن‎ (fa) (raxidan)
• Polish: dyszeć (pl)
• Portuguese: ofegar (pt), arfar (pt), arquejar (pt)
• Russian: пыхте́ть (ru) impf (pyxtétʹ), задыха́ться (ru) impf (zadyxátʹsja) (to choke), запыха́ться (ru) impf (zapyxátʹsja), запы́хаться (ru) pf (zapýxatʹsja)
• Scottish Gaelic: plosg
• Spanish: jadear (es)
• Swedish: flämta (sv), flåsa (sv)
• Tagalog: hingalin
• Walloon: panti (wa), haner (wa)

long for (something); be eager for (something)

• Bulgarian: копнея (bg) (kopneja)
• Finnish: kaivata (fi)
• French: désirer (fr)
• Hungarian: vágyik (hu), vágyódik (hu), sóvárog (hu)

• Italian: desiderare (it), anelare (it), aspirare (it), bramare (it)
• Portuguese: ansiar (pt)
• Spanish: anhelar (es), ansiar (es), desear (es)

intransitive: long eagerly

• Italian: struggersi (it)

• Portuguese: arquejar (pt)

of the heart, to beat with unnatural violence

• Bulgarian: разтупквам се (raztupkvam se)
• Finnish: läpättää (fi), hakata (fi)
• French: palpiter (fr)
• Italian: palpitare (it), pulsare (it)
• Portuguese: palpitar (pt)

• Russian: трепета́ть (ru) impf (trepetátʹ), колоти́ться (ru) impf (kolotítʹsja)
• Scottish Gaelic: plosg
• Spanish: palpitar (es)

sigh; flutter; languish

• Italian: adulare (it), blandire (it), sospirare (it)

• Russian: тоскова́ть (ru) impf (toskovátʹ) (по (po) - for), томи́ться (ru) impf (tomítʹsja) (по (po) - for)

Etymology 2

From pants

Noun

pant (plural pants)

1. (fashion) A pair of pants (trousers or underpants).
2. (used attributively as a modifier) Of or relating to pants.

   Pant leg

Derived terms

Derived terms

• pant cuff
• pant leg

• pantsuit, pant suit
• panty, panties

Translations

a pair of pants — see pants

Etymology 3

Unknown

Noun

pant (plural pants)

1. (Scotland and northeast England) Any public drinking fountain.

References

• OED 2nd edition

Anagrams

• APTN, NAPT, NPTA

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Czech

Noun

pant m

1. hinge

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Danish

Noun

pant

1. a deposit (on packaging such as bottles and cans)

Derived terms

• dåsepant, flaskepant

See also

• depositum (deposit on a rented home)

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Middle English

Verb

pant

1. Alternative form of panten

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Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology

From Middle Low German pant and Old Norse pantr

Noun

pant n (definite singular pantet, indefinite plural pant, definite plural panta or pantene)

1. pawn (item sold to a pawn shop)
2. a mortgage
3. security (on a loan)
4. a forfeit (in a game)
5. a pledge

Related terms

• pantelån
• pantelåner
• pantsette

Noun

pant m (definite singular panten, indefinite plural panter, definite plural pantene)

1. a (refundable) deposit (e.g. on bottles)

References

• “pant” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

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Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology

From Middle Low German pant and Old Norse pantr

Noun

pant n (definite singular pantet, indefinite plural pant, definite plural panta)

1. pawn (item sold to a pawn shop)
2. a mortgage
3. security (on a loan)
4. a forfeit (in a game)
5. a pledge

Related terms

• pantelån

Noun

pant m (definite singular panten, indefinite plural pantar, definite plural pantane)

1. a (refundable) deposit (e.g. on bottles)

References

• “pant” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

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Serbo-Croatian

Etymology

From German Band via Austrian German.

Noun

pȁnt m (Cyrillic spelling па̏нт)

1. hinge

Declension

Declension of pant

	singular	plural
nominative	pȁnt	panti
genitive	panta	panta
dative	pantu	pantima
accusative	pant	pante
vocative	pantu	panti
locative	pante	pantima
instrumental	pantom	pantima

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Swedish

Etymology

From Middle Low German pant and Old Norse pantr

Noun

pant c

1. pledge, item deposited at a pawnshop or otherwise given as a security; money returned when a bottle or similar is recycled

Declension

Declension of pant
	Singular		Plural
	Indefinite	Definite	Indefinite	Definite
Nominative	pant	panten	panter	panterna
Genitive	pants	pantens	panters	panternas

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Welsh

Etymology

From Proto-Celtic *kwantyo- "flat hill", compare Pictish ᚘᚐᚅᚈ (pant, “hollow”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pant/

Noun

pant m (plural pantiau)

1. hollow, depression, small valley, dingle, dell

Mutation

Welsh mutation
radical	soft	nasal	aspirate
pant	bant	mhant	phant
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.