Pronunciations
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/əˈhɛm/
Interjection
The sound of a quiet cough or of clearing one's throat.
Usage- onomatopoeic
Demanding attention.
- Examples
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Ahem! Could we please get started?
Enter Nobody, and the Clowne. / Nobody. Ahem boy, Nobody is ſound yet for all his troubles.
Expresses disapproval or annoyance.
- Examples
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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.
- Examples
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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.
- Examples
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More examples (1)
The tone of Fat is casual and ahem, digestible, while also providing a succinct and significant overview of fatness and some of the issues most relevant to the burgeoning field of fat studies.
Verb
To cough or clear one's throat so as to draw attention.
- Examples
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He wouldn't have been suspected of crying for the world, but he coughed and ahemmed, and finally turned away without speaking.
More examples (1)
A full inspiration, preparatory to hawking, ahemming, or premeditated careful coughing, would excite an explosion of an unusually violent and persistent cough, hurrying the breath out of the poor victims.
Noun
the utterance of a sound similar to clearing the throat; intended to get attention, express hesitancy, fill a pause, hide embarrassment, warn a friend, etc.
- Synonyms
- Broader terms