choke

1
as in to strangle
to keep (someone) from breathing by exerting pressure on the windpipe let go of my throat—you're choking me!

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2
as in to vomit
to experience complete or partial blockage of the windpipe the recommended procedure for helping someone who is choking

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3
as in to suffocate
to be or cause to be killed by lack of breathable air thick, black smoke choked the trapped firefighters

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4

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of choke Wildfire smoke can travel hundreds of miles, clouding skies and choking air quality in distant cities. Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 3 Sep. 2025 Hybrid-resilient architecture—local backups that can kick in like muscle memory when the cloud chokes. Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025 The Israeli military has carried out heavy bombing and ground attacks on Gaza City in recent days, eyewitnesses and Palestinian authorities say, choking vital services and leaving hundreds of thousands of people crammed into an ever-shrinking area. Mahmoud Atef, CNN Money, 30 Aug. 2025 Each year, the CPSC recalls about 400 consumer goods to address hazards ranging from choking and fire to electrocution and chemical exposure. Arick Wierson, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for choke
Recent Examples of Synonyms for choke
Verb
  • The company, which also owns the swankier Bloomingdales brand and cosmetics retailer Bluemercury, barely made it out of the pandemic after lockdowns strangled in-store shopping and drove customers ever closer to Amazon and other big-box retailers.
    Allison Morrow, CNN Money, 3 Sep. 2025
  • The women were strangled and rendered unconscious during the attack.
    Ryan Murphy, IndyStar, 3 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Then, early in the morning of February 18, Chernyak began having seizures and vomiting in his bunk bed.
    Isabelle Chapman, CNN Money, 8 Sep. 2025
  • The first crazy thing that happens to the movie Smurls is when a kitchen chandelier almost falls on them, though the most visceral is when oldest sister Dawn Smurl (Beau Gadsdon) suddenly vomits up pieces of glass, leaving the sink and her face a bloody mess.
    Brian Truitt, USA Today, 5 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Enyedi has often made meditative cinema, but here her restraint in some sequences verges on suffocating.
    Leila Latif, IndieWire, 5 Sep. 2025
  • She, whose life would end in the last year of this leaden, sick, suffocating century, in a noose improvised with the rope of a gymnastics ring.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 4 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Congress previously voted to repeal the law, but then-President Joe Biden blocked the repeal with a presidential veto.
    Rachel Schilke, The Washington Examiner, 4 Sep. 2025
  • In fact, such bills have been introduced repeatedly over the past three decades, only to be blocked time and again by Netanyahu and others.
    MSNBC Newsweek, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Executives canceled projects, throttled budgets and moved production overseas.
    Katie Kilkenny, HollywoodReporter, 4 Sep. 2025
  • Economic development is throttled.
    Sivan Yaari, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Don't tail large vehicles closely - Trucks or buses can kick up a water spray that obstructs visibility.
    CA Weather Bot, Sacbee.com, 5 Sep. 2025
  • Don't tail large vehicles closely - Trucks or buses can kick up a water spray that obstructs visibility.
    NC Weather Bot, Charlotte Observer, 4 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Pegula was often the first to change direction in rallies and constantly jammed Sabalenka with body serves to stop her from unleashing returns.
    Charlie Eccleshare, New York Times, 5 Sep. 2025
  • Grab a bite from LaRosa's and Graeter's, and jam out to music from Q102.
    Caroline Ritzie, The Enquirer, 3 Sep. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Choke.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/choke. Accessed 10 Sep. 2025.

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