Aspiration

September 13th - Word of the Day - Aspiration

as·pi·ra·tion
[as-puh-rey-shuh n]

noun
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 .
     a. 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.
     b. the use of an aspirate  in pronunciation.

5. Medicine/Medical .
     a. 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.
     b. the act of inhaling fluid or a foreign body into the bronchi and lungs, often after vomiting.