I. ˈstīfəl noun
also stifle joint
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English stifle
: the joint next above the hock and near the flank in the hind leg of various quadrupeds (as horses and dogs) : the joint corresponding to the knee in man — see horse illustration
II. transitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
: to affect with dislocation of the stifle bone or disease in the stifle — usually used in passive
III. ˈstīfəl verb
( stifled ; stifled ; stifling -f(ə)liŋ ; stifles )
Etymology: alteration of Middle English stuflen, stufflen, probably modification of Middle French estouffer to smother, suffocate
transitive verb
1. obsolete : to kill by submersion : drown
threw herself into a deep well, in which she was stifled — William Bosman
2.
a. : to kill by depriving of oxygen : asphyxiate , suffocate
shall I not then be stifled in the vault — Shakespeare
every living thing … must have perished slowly or suddenly, stifled by the mud — Francis Kingdon-Ward
b.
(1) : to blanket or envelop to the point of suffocation : smother
the oppressive air stifled her, and she felt that her breath … was suspended — Ellen Glasgow
(2) archaic : to extinguish (fire) by covering : snuff
travelers, armed with felt carpets, were endeavoring to stifle the flame — William Hazlitt †1893
(3) : to mute by or as if by enveloping or screening : muffle
units can be insulated so they almost entirely stifle noise of operation — Jim Riggs
3.
a. : to cut off (as the voice or breath) : silence
engulfing flames soon stifle their cries
b. archaic : to withhold from circulation : conceal , suppress
the papers he thought of too much value to be stifled, and advised the printing of them — Benjamin Franklin
c. : to withhold from expression : keep in check : repress
not the sort of man to stifle anger — J.E.Macdonnell
d. : to curb or quell by force : inhibit , restrain
stifle free speech by breaking up meetings … and confiscating pamphlets — Zechariah Chafee
a belligerent right to stifle the trade of an enemy — F.L.Paxson
e. archaic : to arrest the flow of : absorb , obstruct
they stop and stifle … the rays which they do not reflect or transmit — Isaac Newton
f. : to act as a deterrent to : deprive of initiative or vitality : discourage , trammel
the mountain barrier stifles the commerce which might develop — P.E.James
economic controls, which have … stifled our economy — A.E.Summerfield
vital art is stifled by culture, which insists that artists … imitate old masters — Clive Bell
intransitive verb
1. : to become suffocated by or as if by lack of oxygen : smother
no need to stifle in a hot kitchen this summer — Better Homes & Gardens
my unsoiled name … will so your accusations overweigh, that you shall stifle in your own report — Shakespeare
2. : to undergo repression or restraint
why should I stifle in a convent — P.B.Kyne
Synonyms: see suffocate
IV. noun
( -s )
: a suffocating atmosphere
the stifle of the subway — Everybody's Magazine