suffocation

American  

[suhf-uh-key-shuhn] / ˌsʌf əˈkeɪ ʃən /

noun

1. the act of killing by preventing air from getting to the blood through the lungs or gills; strangulation.

   A crushing neck injury resulted in the child’s suffocation.

2. difficulty breathing or inability to breathe, or any act that causes this.

   One protestor endured temporary suffocation from tear gas.

3. the act of making someone uncomfortable, or the fact of becoming uncomfortable, through lack of fresh air.

   Every noon, the market was crowded; but on Sundays, it was crowded to the point of suffocation.

4. the act or practice of thwarting someone’s self-expression, freedom, independence, etc..

   Under the military regime there was so much suffocation of the media—they even burned down news offices.

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Etymology

Origin of suffocation

First recorded in 1570–80; from Latin suffōcātiōn-, stem of suffōcātiō, “a choking, stifling”; see suffocate ( def. ), -ion ( def. )

Example Sentences

When hypergolic propellants burn, they release highly carcinogenic toxins and can cause suffocation and mutate a person’s DNA.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 19, 2026

"They did not drown," he said, indicating that the two most likely died from "suffocation, as unfortunately often happens".

From Barron's • May 3, 2026

That they’re the only black principals brings something new to the story, and alliance, and something extraneous to the message of Hedda’s social suffocation and the motive for her misdeeds.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 28, 2025

Autopsy reports indicate that a number of those killed in these apartment collapses during the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake and the 1994 Northridge earthquake died from suffocation.

From Los Angeles Times • May 21, 2025

Maybe that’s why he had started to fear suffocation.

From "The Mark of Athena" by Rick Riordan