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strangle

[ strang-guhl ]
/ ˈstréƋ gəl /
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See synonyms for: strangle / strangler on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object), stran·gled, stran·gling.
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.
to kill by stopping the breath in any manner; choke; stifle; suffocate.
to prevent the continuance, growth, rise, or action of; suppress: Censorship strangles a free press.
verb (used without object), stran·gled, stran·gling.
to be choked, stifled, or suffocated.
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Origin of strangle

1250–1300; Middle English strangelen<Old French estrangler<Latin strangulāre<Greek strangalñn, derivative of strangálē halter, akin to strangós twisted

OTHER WORDS FROM strangle

strangler, nounstran·gling·ly, adverbun·stran·gled, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use strangle in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for strangle

strangle
/ (ˈstréƋɡəl) /

verb
(tr) to kill by compressing the windpipe; throttle
(tr) to prevent or inhibit the growth or development ofto strangle originality
(tr) to suppress (an utterance) by or as if by swallowing suddenlyto strangle a cry
See also strangles

Word Origin for strangle

C13: via Old French, ultimately from Greek strangalē a halter
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
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