Gasp \Gasp\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Gasped; p. pr. & vb. n. Gasping.]

[OE. gaspen, gaispen, to yawn, gasp, Icel. geispa to yawn; akin to Sw. g["a]spa, Dan. gispe to gasp.]

1. To open the mouth wide in catching the breath, or in laborious respiration; to labor for breath; to respire convulsively; to pant violently.

She gasps and struggles hard for life. --Lloyd.

2. To pant with eagerness; to show vehement desire.

Quenching the gasping furrows' thirst with rain. --Spenser.

Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
 

Gasp \Gasp\, v. t. To emit or utter with gasps; -- with forth, out, away, etc.

And with short sobs he gasps away his breath. --Dryden.

Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
 

Gasp \Gasp\, n. The act of opening the mouth convulsively to catch the breath; a labored respiration; a painful catching of the breath.

At the last gasp, at the point of death. --Addison.

Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)