in the same breath
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Meaning · English
To say two things that seem contradictory or opposite at the same time
Literally: speaking simultaneously
Where it’s used:
Used
Widespread English
Examples
TRIVANDRUM, INDIA – It is fashionable these days, particularly in the West, to speak of India and China in the same breath.
Tut, don't I know. " she added in the same breath, laughing as he laughed.
British National Corpus sentence via the MAGPIE corpus (CC BY 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30)
Sources & notes
Listed in Wiktionary’s “English idioms” category (retrieved 2026-07-29); definition pending editorial review. Definition drafted by AI (@cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast) and auto-approved by rule on 2026-07-31; pending editor spot-check.
Common questions
What does “in the same breath” mean?
To say two things that seem contradictory or opposite at the same time Literally: speaking simultaneously
Is “in the same breath” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.