suffocate
verb /ˈsʌfəkeɪt/
/ˈsʌfəkeɪt/
[intransitive, transitive]Verb Forms
| present simple I / you / we / they suffocate | /ˈsʌfəkeɪt/ /ˈsʌfəkeɪt/ |
| he / she / it suffocates | /ˈsʌfəkeɪts/ /ˈsʌfəkeɪts/ |
| past simple suffocated | /ˈsʌfəkeɪtɪd/ /ˈsʌfəkeɪtɪd/ |
| past participle suffocated | /ˈsʌfəkeɪtɪd/ /ˈsʌfəkeɪtɪd/ |
| -ing form suffocating | /ˈsʌfəkeɪtɪŋ/ /ˈsʌfəkeɪtɪŋ/ |
- to die because there is no air to breathe; to kill somebody by not letting them breathe air
- Many dogs have suffocated in hot cars.
- suffocate somebody/something The couple were suffocated by fumes from a faulty gas fire.
- He put the pillow over her face and suffocated her.
- (figurative) She felt suffocated by all the rules and regulations.
Word Originlate 15th cent. (earlier (late Middle English) as suffocation): from Latin suffocat- ‘stifled’, from the verb suffocare, from sub- ‘below’ + fauces ‘throat’.