asphyxiate

American  

[as-fik-see-eyt] / æsˈfɪk siˌeɪt /

verb (used with object)

asphyxiated, asphyxiating

1. to produce asphyxia in.

2. to cause to die or lose consciousness by impairing normal breathing, as by gas or other noxious agents; choke; suffocate; smother.

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verb (used without object)

asphyxiated, asphyxiating

1. to become asphyxiated.

asphyxiate British  

/ æsˈfɪksɪˌeɪt /

verb

1. to cause asphyxia in or undergo asphyxia; smother; suffocate

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Other Word Forms

• asphyxiation noun
• asphyxiator noun

Etymology

Origin of asphyxiate

First recorded in 1830–40; asphyxi(a) + -ate ¹

Example Sentences

Hospital surveillance video shows that deputies dragged Otieno, his wrists and ankles shackled, into an admissions room, where officers and hospital employees piled on top of him for 11 minutes, until Otieno asphyxiated.

From Washington Post

Three days later, Otieno was dead; authorities say he was asphyxiated after sheriff’s deputies and hospital workers piled upon him at a state mental hospital in an incident that was caught on video.

From Washington Post

He was asphyxiated in the process, according to the local prosecutor.

From New York Times

During the ceremony, part of the crowd surged into a narrow tunnel and 45 men and boys were asphyxiated or trampled.

From Reuters

His last AP article revealed the previously unknown saga of Carlos Marrón, an exiled businessman lured back home by his father’s kidnapping only to end up beaten and asphyxiated in one of Maduro’s jails.

From Seattle Times

Related Words

• suffocate