suffocating 1 of 2

adjective

ˈsə-fə-ˌkā-tiŋ How to pronounce suffocating (audio)
Definition of suffocatingnext
as in close
lacking fresh air inside the bunker it was suffocating, and some of the men had already passed out

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

suffocating

2 of 2

verb

present participle of suffocate
1
as in strangling
to be or cause to be killed by lack of breathable air the law requires the owner of a discarded refrigerator to remove its door so that a child won't get trapped inside and suffocate

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in choking
to keep (someone) from breathing by exerting pressure on the windpipe temporarily suffocated by the seat belt

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3
as in vomiting
to experience complete or partial blockage of the windpipe suffocating in the thick, black smoke of the burning building

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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 suffocating
Adjective
The Hurricanes held Vegas to five total goals in Games 4 and 5 and used a suffocating defense in a 3-0 shutout in Sunday night's clinching Game 6 to win their first championship in 20 years. — CBS News, 15 June 2026 Following a first week marked by a suffocating heatwave, relief finally arrived in Paris on Sunday, with temperatures dropping to 21 degrees C (70 F) around midday. — ABC News, 31 May 2026
Verb
Investigators said Sierra forced the family inside the home and locked the girls in a bedroom before taking Machado into the master bedroom and suffocating her with a plastic bag. — Sergio Candido, CBS News, 29 Sep. 2026 Hossain and her collaborators have conjured an internalized hellscape marked by sensual photography, gnarly cyst makeup, and suffocating matrimonial rituals involving turmeric and milk — all redolent with upper-class heteronormative rot. — Ritesh Mehta, IndieWire, 5 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for suffocating
Recent Examples of Synonyms for suffocating
  1. close
  2. strangling
  3. choking
  4. vomiting
  5. stifling
  6. smothering
  7. breathless
  8. drowning
Adjective
  • The first five conditions describe any lasting affectionate bond, such as a close friendship.
    — Pascal Vrticka, Scientific American, 4 Oct. 2026
  • While formally a candidate for European Union membership, Serbia’s accession process has stalled under Vucic, who maintains close ties with Russia and China.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 3 Oct. 2026
Definition of close
Verb
  • Devin Jacob Ballard, 20, who is stationed at Futenma Air Station, on suspicion of strangling Anna Yagi, 39, at a hotel in the island's capital city, Naha, early Saturday and stealing her wallet and backpack.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 7 Oct. 2026
  • The Marine, who denies the allegations, is accused of strangling 39-year-old Anna Yagi and stealing her belongings.
    — Ben Finley, Los Angeles Times, 6 Oct. 2026
Definition of strangling
Verb
  • Car seats, walkers and other baby gear sold at Target have been recalled due to choking hazards and the risk of serious injury from falls.
    — Sacbee.com, Sacbee.com, 23 Sep. 2026
  • Loud persistent snoring, sudden gasping or choking for air, waking with a dry mouth and breathing pauses a partner usually notices first.
    — Samantha Agate, Charlotte Observer, 23 Sep. 2026
Definition of choking
Verb
  • Robertson said that about two days later, her daughter started vomiting, developed a high fever, and had severe diarrhea.
    — Erin Jones, CBS News, 6 Oct. 2026
  • That stood out to him clearly in his mind because hours later, his assistant, Brown, was vomiting violently out of the car window on the way back to the airport.
    — Jacqui Palumbo, CNN Money, 18 Sep. 2026
Definition of vomiting
Adjective
  • For all the deserved talk about the Knicks’ dynamic offense, the defense has been far more stifling than their reputation suggests.
    — Fred Katz, New York Times, 15 May 2026
  • Her mother, who had a staid upbringing in California, came to New York in the early sixties looking for someplace more diverse and less stifling.
    — Molly Fischer, New Yorker, 2 Apr. 2026
Definition of stifling
Verb
  • The Minnesota defense stopped Love on a sneak, and from that point on, the defense was smothering, applying pressure at the perfect time.
    — Matt Schneidman, New York Times, 13 Sep. 2026
  • Wildfires are ripping across parts of Indonesia, destroying precious peatland and smothering the country in a toxic smoke so thick, people are struggling to breathe.
    — Laura Paddison, CNN Money, 9 Sep. 2026
Definition of smothering
Adjective
  • That suggests that the filmmaker and performer is not on the general public’s radar in as big a way as the breathless media coverage suggests.
    — Marcus Jones, IndieWire, 2 Oct. 2026
  • Rodriguez was still breathless during the post dance interviews.
    — Liza Esquibias, USA Today, 22 Sep. 2026
Definition of breathless
Verb
  • In 1992, on a factory floor in a Toyota auto-parts subsidiary in Japan, workers were drowning in barcodes.
    — HubSpot, HubSpot, 1 Oct. 2026
  • Meanwhile, the person on the other side of the table is drowning.
    — Omer Qureshi, Forbes.com, 29 Sep. 2026
Definition of drowning

Browse Nearby Words

suffocates
suffocating
suffrage
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Cite this Entry

“Suffocating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/suffocating. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.

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