grab some air

English

Verb

grab some air (third-person singular simple present grabs some air, present participle grabbing some air, simple past and past participle grabbed some air)

1. To catch one's breath; to take deep breaths after stressful or strenuous activity or after holding one's breath.
   • 2013, Diane Beck, Project Management Secrets, →ISBN:

     Grab some air. Don't flail. Get horizontal. Grab some air again. Relax.

   • 2013, Ramón Ángel Salamán Nicolini, Grasping Life, →ISBN, page 29:

     Finally the meeting started and that gave a few moments to grab some air and calm myself.

   • 2013, Ann Pearlman, Colton Simpson, Inside the Crips: Life Inside L.A.'s Most Notorious Gang, →ISBN:

     It's quiet except for my gasping, my heart.There, a car. I'm almost there, at the street, on the other side. I stop, lean my palms on my knees to grab some air.

   • 2014, Ted Wood, Murder on Ice, →ISBN:

     I gave him thirty seconds to grab some air, then asked him, "What the hell gives?"

2. To go outside for some fresh air; get some air.
   • 1953, William Chambers, Robert Chambers, Chambers's Journal, page 65:

     I was grabbing some air outside the Cavu Club when, far above me, I heard the slow clang of geese bucking head winds, winging north.

   • 2007, Julian Hudson, Black Alert at Gonzo Station, →ISBN, page 415:

     You and the flyboys have everything buttoned up, and I feel like grabbing some air and taking a stroll.

   • 2013, Madeline Bell, Gaby - Wunderkind, →ISBN, page 98:

     "Where've you been, you weren't in the toilets," “Just er grabbing some air,” she blushed.

3. (aviation, slang) To gain altitude.
   • 1957 May, Robert Sundberg, “I learned about flying from that!”, in Flying Magazine, volume 60, number 5, page 52:

     Instantly I applied full throttle, and eased back on the wheel, hoping that our friend, the T-craft would grab some air and put a few feet between us and all that snow and ice.

   • 1985, Jim Richard Campbell, Flyer's guide to ultralights, page 12:

     I hate first flights in anything, no matter how ideal the circumstances, but my discomfort was eased considerably upon firewalling the beast, lifting the tail, and grabbing some air. The responsive feel was unmistakable.

   • 2003, War, Literature, and the Arts - Volume 15, page 6:

     Then, just as suddenly, the F-86 grabbed some air, leveled out, and turned slightly upward.

   • 2014, Gary Farmer, The Streets Are Blue, →ISBN:

     I started grabbing some air—3,600 . . . 3,700 . . . 3,800 . . . 3,900 feet—and the jet came under us ...

4. (extreme sports) To become airborne; catch air.
   • 1988, The Connoisseur: An Illustrated Magazine for Collectors:

     Whap! A small surfboard goes by, grabbing some air.

   • 1992, Troy Bannon, Mean Street, →ISBN, page 41:

     He used the tilted side as a ramp, grabbed some air, fakied down, and ollied back onto level ground.

   • 2010, Scott Ciencin, Avalanche Freestyle, →ISBN:

     Up for grabs is the Aurora-X, the best board on the market — and I plan on taking first place. Out of the way, rich kid! Huh? You rule, Tony! Nice air, man! . . . and I'm about to grab some air!

   • 2013, DM Archer, The Astral Projection Conspiracy, →ISBN:

     I'm going to shimmy up to those rails above the park and try to grab some air.