choke

[ chohk ]

/ tʃoʊk /

Save This Word!

See synonyms for: choke / choked / choking on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object), choked, chok·ing.

to stop the breath of by squeezing or obstructing the windpipe; strangle; stifle.

to stop by or as if by strangling or stifling: The sudden wind choked his words.

to stop by filling; obstruct; clog: Grease choked the drain.

to suppress (a feeling, emotion, etc.) (often followed by back or down): I managed to choke back my tears.

to fill chock-full: The storeroom was choked with furniture.

to seize (a log, felled tree, etc.) with a chain, cable, or the like, so as to facilitate removal.

to enrich the fuel mixture of (an internal-combustion engine) by diminishing the air supply to the carburetor.

Sports. to grip (a bat, racket, or the like) farther than usual from the end of the handle; shorten one's grip on (often followed by up).

verb (used without object), choked, chok·ing.

to suffer from or as from strangling or suffocating: He choked on a piece of food.

to become obstructed, clogged, or otherwise stopped: The words choked in her throat.

noun

the act or sound of choking.

a mechanism by which the air supply to the carburetor of an internal-combustion engine can be diminished or stopped.

Machinery. any mechanism that, by blocking a passage, regulates the flow of air, gas, etc.

Electricity. choke coil.

a narrowed part, as in a chokebore.

the bristly upper portion of the receptacle of the artichoke.

Verb Phrases

choke off, to stop or obstruct by or as by choking: to choke off a nation's fuel supply.

choke up,

to become or cause to become speechless, as from the effect of emotion or stress: She choked up over the sadness of the tale.
to become too tense or nervous to perform well: Our team began to choke up in the last inning.

OTHER WORDS FOR choke

3 block, dam, plug.

See synonyms for choke on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

ARE YOU A TRUE BLUE CHAMPION OF THESE "BLUE" SYNONYMS?

We could talk until we're blue in the face about this quiz on words for the color "blue," but we think you should take the quiz and find out if you're a whiz at these colorful terms.

Question 1 of 8

Which of the following words describes “sky blue”?

navy

beryl

azure

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Meet Grammar Coach

Write or paste your essay, email, or story into Grammar Coach and get grammar help

Improve Your Writing

Meet Grammar CoachImprove Your Writing

Origin of choke

1150–1200; Middle English choken,cheken, variant of achoken, acheken,Old English ācēocian to suffocate; akin to Old Norse kōk gullet

OTHER WORDS FROM choke

choke·a·ble, adjectivein·ter·choke, verb (used with object), in·ter·choked, in·ter·chok·ing.un·choke·a·ble, adjectiveun·choked, adjective

Words nearby choke

choirgirl, choir loft, choirmaster, choir school, Choiseul, choke, choke back, chokeberry, chokebore, choke chain, chokecherry

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

How to use choke in a sentence

You could also seek out countries with internet choke points that slow or make Wi-Fi use pointless and frustrating.
If We Ever Go On Vacations Again|Eugene Robinson|July 25, 2021|Ozy
Instead, the growing costs of sustaining Moore’s Law have encouraged consolidation among chipmakers and created more choke points in the immensely complex business of chip production.
The great chip crisis threatens the promise of Moore’s Law|Jeremy Hsu|June 30, 2021|MIT Technology Review
Of all the choke points, it was my least favorite to pass through, and when I did so as a ship captain I was up and awake all night.
The Blocked Suez Canal Isn't the Only Waterway the World Should Be Worried About|James Stavridis|March 29, 2021|Time
The family was told her handcuffed son reached for an officer’s gun, prompting them to put him in a choke hold–a maneuver Minneapolis police finally banned last June.
It's a 'Nightmare Being Replayed' as a Cop Faces Trial in George Floyd's Death|Janell Ross|March 18, 2021|Time

Gently twist and pull away the petals at the very center until the furry choke is revealed.
How to prep, cook and enjoy stuffed artichokes|Ann Maloney|March 11, 2021|Washington Post
He then began to choke her, and as she lost consciousness it must have seemed that his might be the last face she would ever see.
The Girls Who Were Taken Before Hannah Graham|Michael Daly|September 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
According to their friend, producer/filmmaker Choke No Joke, it was over a mutual flame.
Did Beyoncé Just Accuse Jay Z of Cheating?|Marlow Stern|July 2, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Shiomura continued to speak even though she had to choke back tears at one point.
Japanese Parliament to Women: Breed, Don't Lead|Jake Adelstein, Angela Erika Kubo|June 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
A new Kimberley Process working group to monitor CAR might help focus attention on the guilty and choke the diamond flow.
The Curse of CAR: Warlords, Blood Diamonds, and Dead Elephants|Christopher Day|May 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But for a movie that choke-holds you in suspense from the very first scene, Cold in July is also surprisingly funny.
Michael C. Hall on Where ‘Dexter’ Went Wrong and His New Killer Role in ‘Cold in July’|Melissa Leon|May 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It's good for nothing but to choke a man and fill him full of smoke and embers.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce|E. R. Billings.
He felt that to eat would choke him, but forced himself to take a sip of coffee and a bit of corn bread.
The Cromptons|Mary J. Holmes
There was another choke in her voice as she smoothed Judy's old brown dress, and brushed a bit of bran from her face.
The Cromptons|Mary J. Holmes
The spoondrift began to fly so that you could not see the moon, and the wind was enough to choke you if you faced it.
The Chequers|James Runciman
Hester fiercely bit her lip and gulped down the tears that threatened to choke her.
Those Dale Girls|Frank Weston Carruth

British Dictionary definitions for choke

choke

/ (tʃəʊk) /

verb

(tr) to hinder or stop the breathing of (a person or animal), esp by constricting the windpipe or by asphyxiation

(intr) to have trouble or fail in breathing, swallowing, or speaking

(tr) to block or clog up (a passage, pipe, street, etc)

(tr) to retard the growth or action ofthe weeds are choking my plants

(tr) to suppress (emotion)she choked her anger

(intr) slang to die

(tr) to enrich the petrol-air mixture by reducing the air supply to (a carburettor, petrol engine, etc)

(intr) (esp in sport) to be seized with tension and fail to perform well

noun

the act or sound of choking

a device in the carburettor of a petrol engine that enriches the petrol-air mixture by reducing the air supply

any constriction or mechanism for reducing the flow of a fluid in a pipe, tube, etc

Also called: choke coil electronics an inductor having a relatively high impedance, used to prevent the passage of high frequencies or to smooth the output of a rectifier

the inedible centre of the head of an artichoke

Derived forms of choke

chokeable, adjective

Word Origin for choke

Old English ācēocian, of Germanic origin; related to cheek

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Medical definitions for choke

choke

[ chōk ]

To interfere with the respiration of by compression or obstruction of the larynx or trachea.

To have difficulty in breathing, swallowing, or speaking.

choke

OTHER WORDS FOR choke

Origin of choke

OTHER WORDS FROM choke

Words nearby choke

Words related to choke

How to use choke in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for choke

Derived forms of choke

Word Origin for choke

Medical definitions for choke