suffocate
verb (used with object)
to kill by preventing the access of air to the blood through the lungs or analogous organs, as gills; strangle.
suffocated
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past participleof suffocate.past participle
A verb form used in perfect and passive verb constructions and that can also function as a modifier.
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past tense formof suffocate.past tense
Used to describe completed actions or previous habitual actions.
suffocateverb (used with object)to kill by preventing the access of air to the blood through the lungs or analogous organs, as gills; strangle.
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.
“I feel suffocated and breathless when it is too hot,” she says.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 7, 2026
"It speaks about inner fears, self-doubt, and the feeling of being emotionally suffocated by our own expectations. It was never intended to represent anything sexual."
From BBC ● May 8, 2026
When the man was determined to have suffocated from gas and his body pulled out by a rope, Bonnag decided "no, I can't continue like this".
From Barron's ● Jan. 15, 2026
"We know of businesses here in Wales who are being suffocated by a flood of counterfeit versions of their products online."
From BBC ● Nov. 1, 2025
At first, when they tried to cook inside with one of the blubber stoves, the oily smoke nearly suffocated the men.
From "Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World" by Jennifer Armstrong
