suffocate Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. verb deprive of oxygen and prevent from breathing
    asphyxiate; smother.
    • Othello smothered Desdemona with a pillow
    • The child suffocated herself with a plastic bag that the parents had left on the floor
  2. verb impair the respiration of or obstruct the air passage of
    stifle; asphyxiate; choke.
    • The foul air was slowly suffocating the children
  3. verb become stultified, suppressed, or stifled
    choke.
    • He is suffocating--living at home with his aged parents in the small village
  4. verb suppress the development, creativity, or imagination of
    choke.
    • His job suffocated him
  5. verb be asphyxiated; die from lack of oxygen
    stifle; asphyxiate.
    • The child suffocated under the pillow
  6. verb feel uncomfortable for lack of fresh air
    • The room was hot and stuffy and we were suffocating
  7. verb struggle for breath; have insufficient oxygen intake
    gag; strangle; choke.
    • he swallowed a fishbone and gagged

WordNet

Suf"fo*cate adjective
Etymology
L. suffocatus, p.p. of suffocare to choke; sub under + fauces the throat. Cf. Faucal.
Definitions
  1. Suffocated; choked. Shak.
Suf"fo*cate transitive verb
Wordforms
imperfect & past participle Suffocated ; present participle & verbal noun Suffocating
Definitions
  1. To choke or kill by stopping respiration; to stifle; to smother.
    Let not hemp his windpipe suffocate. Shak.
  2. To destroy; to extinguish; as, to suffocate fire.
Suf"fo*cate intransitive verb
Definitions
  1. To become choked, stifled, or smothered. "A swelling discontent is apt to suffocate and strangle without passage." collier.

Webster 1913