strangle
Americanverb (used with object)
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to kill by squeezing the throat in order to compress the windpipe and prevent the intake of air, as with the hands or a tightly drawn cord.
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to kill by stopping the breath in any manner; choke; stifle; suffocate.
- Synonyms:
- smother
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to prevent the continuance, growth, rise, or action of; suppress.
Censorship strangles a free press.
verb (used without object)
verb
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(tr) to kill by compressing the windpipe; throttle
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(tr) to prevent or inhibit the growth or development of
to strangle originality
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(tr) to suppress (an utterance) by or as if by swallowing suddenly
to strangle a cry
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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stranglesimple
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stranglessimple
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have strangledperfect
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has strangledperfect
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am stranglingprogressive
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are stranglingprogressive
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is stranglingprogressive
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have been stranglingperfect progressive
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has been stranglingperfect progressive
Past
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strangledsimple
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had strangledperfect
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was stranglingprogressive
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were stranglingprogressive
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had been stranglingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of strangle
1250–1300; Middle English strangelen < Old French estrangler < Latin strangulāre < Greek strangalân, derivative of strangálē halter, akin to strangós twisted
Explanation
To strangle is to cut off someone's breathing by squeezing their throat. If your turtleneck sweater is too tight, you might feel like it's strangling you. To strangle is to squeeze shut, and it can also mean to gasp for air as if your throat were being squeezed. The word strangle comes from the Greek strangalan, "to choke or twist.” In addition to its throat-constricting meaning, strangle has also come to mean "hinder," like when your parents' strict curfew strangles your social life or when you try to strangle a sneeze in a quiet library.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
With the Iran war continuing to strangle Middle East oil supplies, public transit agencies looking to add passengers might expect high gas prices to incentivize people to ride the rails more than ever.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 23, 2026
The strangle costs about $13.15, but of course, the actual cost of the trade is multiplied by 100, which each options contract represents.
From Barron's • Mar. 25, 2026
The group aims to fight regulations they say will strangle AI.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 20, 2026
Stagflation doesn’t have to strangle your stock portfolio.
From MarketWatch • Mar. 20, 2026
They attached the line with which they had been snubbing the boat to Buck’s neck and shoulders, being careful that it should neither strangle him nor impede his swimming, and launched him into the stream.
From "The Call of the Wild" by Jack London
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
