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.

---

Etymology

Origin of suffocation

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

Example Sentences

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

However, Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis earlier said it had received the bodies of 10 people who were killed due to "suffocation" after an aid site was closed by the GHF's US private security contractors.

From BBC

One official in Muthanna province reported to the AFP news agency at least 700 cases of what they said was suffocation.

From BBC

A coroner's report to prevent future deaths like his found there was very little information on safe positioning of babies in slings or the risks of suffocation when feeding.

From BBC

Boys, who elsewhere in Pakistan may dream of a career, only talk of escape: fleeing to Karachi, to the Gulf, to anywhere that offers a way out of this slow suffocation.

From BBC