ˈsəfəˌkāt, usu -ād.+V verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Latin suffocatus, past participle of suffocare to choke, stifle, from sub- + fauces, foces (plural) throat
transitive verb
1. : to stop the respiration of (as by strangling or asphyxiation) : deprive of oxygen by any means : make unable to breathe
2. obsolete : to compress so as to impede or prevent breathing
let not hemp his windpipe suffocate — Shakespeare
3.
a. : to overcome or make extremely uncomfortable by want of cool fresh air
b. : to impede or stop the development, growth, or activity of as though by depriving of air
intransitive verb
: to become suffocated:
a. : to die from being unable to breathe
the children locked in the chest suffocated
b. : to be very uncomfortable through lack of air
she was suffocating in the hot little kitchen
c. : to become checked, stultified, or enervated in growth or development
Synonyms:
asphyxiate , stifle , smother , choke , strangle , throttle : suffocate commonly refers to conditions in which breathing is impossible through lack of available oxygen or through presence of noxious or poisonous gas
prisoners suffocated in the underground dungeon
suffocate also refers to situations in which breathing is impossible because mouth and nose are covered
suffocating under the mud and earth which had fallen over his head
asphyxiate is likely to refer to situations in which death comes through poisonous gases in the air or through lack of sufficient oxygen
asphyxiated by the chlorine gas in the cellar
stifle is likely to refer to situations in which breathing is difficult or impossible through lack of adequate fresh air and, often, presence of heat
closing a hatch to stop a fire and the destruction of a cargo was justified even if it was known that doing so would stifle a man below — O.W.Holmes †1935
smother is likely to be used in situations in which the supply of oxygen is inadequate for life; it often suggests a deadening pall of smoke, dust, or other impurity in the air
smothered by the dust after the explosion
a smell of soot which smothered the scent of wistaria and iris — Louis Bromfield
smother also refers to situations in which the mouth and nose are covered so that one cannot breathe
was smothered with a cushion
choke suggests difficulty in breathing through constriction, obstruction, or extreme irritation within the throat
choked to death by a brutal marauder
choking on a chicken bone lodged in the throat
choking as he breathed the acrid smoke
strangle also refers to constriction of the throat, obstruction of the windpipe, or irritation but it is more likely to indicate fatality or quite serious condition
fingers itched to strangle him — R.W.Buchanan
strangling on a chicken bone
throttle may suggest external compression of the throat done forcefully for the purpose of subduing or overcoming resistance
heartbeats … so violent that they seemed … throttling hands to her throat — Edith Wharton