suffocate
Americanverb (used with object)
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suffocates,
present (3rd person singular)
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suffocated,
past participle, past
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suffocating
present participle
verb
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to kill or be killed by the deprivation of oxygen, as by obstruction of the air passage or inhalation of noxious gases
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to block the air passages or have the air passages blocked
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to feel or cause to feel discomfort from heat and lack of air
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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suffocationnoun
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suffocatingadjective
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suffocativeadjective
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unsuffocatedadjective
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unsuffocativeadjective
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suffocatinglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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suffocatesimple
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suffocatessimple
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have suffocatedperfect
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has suffocatedperfect
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am suffocatingprogressive
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are suffocatingprogressive
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is suffocatingprogressive
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have been suffocatingperfect progressive
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has been suffocatingperfect progressive
Past
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suffocatedsimple
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had suffocatedperfect
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was suffocatingprogressive
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were suffocatingprogressive
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had been suffocatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of suffocate
First recorded in 1520–30; from Latin suffōcātus (past participle of suffōcāre “to choke, stifle”), equivalent to suf- suf- + -fōc- (combining form of fauc-, stem of faucēs “throat”) + -ātus -ate 1
Explanation
When you suffocate, you struggle for breath, either because you’re being choked to death or because you’re in a stifling room. You can also suffocate in a figurative sense anytime something is restricted. Suffocate can also mean to die from lack of oxygen. If you’re a miner who gets trapped in a collapsed mine, you'll likely suffocate. Less seriously, if the ventilation system is turned off in your school, you might feel as though you'll suffocate. And if your art teacher insists that you produce Dadaist paintings, you may feel that she's trying to suffocate your talent.
Vocabulary lists containing suffocate
"My Favorite Chaperone," Vocabulary from the short story
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A Thousand Splendid Suns
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Out of the Dust
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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.
See Examples For:
“Take advantage of the time you have ahead of you to understand risk better. Don’t suffocate your portfolio” by allocating too much for income-based investments.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 26, 2026
He produced three glorious passing shots - two off the backhand and one off the forehand - and moved well behind the baseline to suffocate Durasovic.
From BBC ● Feb. 5, 2026
Their breath was believed to poison the air and suffocate the land, especially in swampy regions where disease was common.
From Science Daily ● Feb. 2, 2026
Western powers have imposed increasingly severe sanctions to suffocate the smuggling network, but Wednesday’s action—the latest in a recent string of assaults against the shadow fleet—demonstrates a more decisive approach to stamping it out.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 9, 2026
It never crossed my mind that my brother might suffocate.
From "Kaffir Boy: An Autobiography" by Mark Mathabane
"She has heart disease. Sometimes she suffocates and turns blue. She can't continue living in a tent."
From BBC ● May 20, 2025
However, if there is too much calcium, the mitochondrial processes become unbalanced and the cell suffocates.
From Science Daily ● Jan. 29, 2024
In Los Angeles County alone, a baby suffocates nearly every week while sleeping, according to the infant safe sleep campaign from the Inter-Agency Council on Child Abuse and Neglect.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 16, 2023
"The increase in the cost of living suffocates workers and jeopardises the well-being and comfort of their families."
From Reuters ● Mar. 17, 2023
This atmosphere of carbolic and gangrene clogs the lungs, it is a thick gruel, it suffocates.
From "All Quiet on the Western Front: A Novel" by Erich Maria Remarque
It was a game New England nearly blew but didn’t; it was a potential loss that could have suffocated playoff hopes, but the Patriots completed the job.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026
She said one of her babies went blue and almost suffocated when she tried to breastfeed her.
From BBC ● Jun. 15, 2026
India has also received three shipments of crude oil from Iran, according to a local Iranian diplomatic mission—the first such transfers in years after sanctions suffocated trade between the two countries.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 22, 2026
"Around 9 pm, I was feeling suffocated and nostalgic, so I got in the car to drive around town," a 28-year-old woman told AFP on Monday on condition that her identity be protected.
From Barron's ● Apr. 1, 2026
But as I journey into night, I feel more and more trapped, suffocated by the slippery bindings, unable to emerge until I have transformed into something of beauty.
From "Mockingjay" by Suzanne Collins
Indonesia has been battling fires for weeks in parts of Borneo and Sumatra, sending suffocating haze across the islands and neighbouring Malaysia and Singapore.
From Barron's ● Sep. 26, 2026
A franchise that used to cycle through mostly forgettable quarterbacks and relied on suffocating defense now hopes to win a Super Bowl by betting that its budding star can outscore just about anyone.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026
And maybe it was the focus-sapping heat, but USC’s defense wasn’t as stifling, not as suffocating it should have been against an opponent as hopelessly overmatched as San José State.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 30, 2026
His high-press, suffocating style was once revolutionary but is now firmly in the mainstream.
From BBC ● Jun. 26, 2026
Sierra felt as though it was suffocating her, a tension eating away at her very cells.
From "Shadowshaper" by Daniel José Older
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.
