ahem.
The sound of a quiet cough or of clearing one's throat.
Meaning & usage
The sound of a quiet cough or of clearing one's throat.
Demanding attention.
Ahem! Could we please get started?
Expresses disapproval or annoyance.
Ahem! In case you didn't notice, I did my share of the work, too.
Indicates the speaker does not wish to be perceived as rude, often intimating an impolite meaning to a third party that the speaker is not addressing. Indicates subtle sarcasm, polite lying, or euphemism.
I really (ahem!) liked the chocolate broccoli surprise.
Indicates the speaker does not wish to be perceived as rude, often intimating an impolite meaning to a third party that the speaker is not addressing. Indicates an unintentional or inappropriate pun.
Where this word comes from
Onomatopoeic.
To cough or clear one's throat so as to draw attention.
Where this word comes from
Onomatopoeic.
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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.
Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.