asphyxia

noun

as·​phyx·​ia as-ˈfik-sē-ə 

əs-

1

: a lack of oxygen or excess of carbon dioxide in the body that results in unconsciousness and often death and is usually caused by interruption of breathing or inadequate oxygen supply

2

: the state of being stifled or suppressed

As a patient in hospital I felt both anguish and asphyxia—the anguish of being confronted with dissolution, and asphyxia because I could not be heard.

—Oliver Sacks

Examples of asphyxia in a Sentence

The cause of death was asphyxia.

Recent Examples on the Web

Most are shooting deaths, but one woman died from asphyxia after being beaten with a hammer, and a toddler died from exposure due to being neglected. —Jade Jackson, IndyStar, 2 July 2025

In the morning, a groundskeeper found Elijah suspended in a window, dead of asphyxia. —Emerson Clarridge, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 13 June 2025

He had been starved and beaten, with medical staff determining his cause of death was asphyxia by neck compression, prosecutors said. —Olivia Lloyd, Kansas City Star, 6 June 2025

An autopsy conducted by the Suffolk County Medical Examiner’s Office concluded that the cause of death was asphyxia due to torso compression and smothering. —Muri Assunção, New York Daily News, 22 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

New Latin, from Greek, stopping of the pulse, from a- + sphyzein to throb

First Known Use

1778, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

asphyxia

noun

as·​phyx·​ia as-ˈfik-sē-ə 

: a lack of oxygen or excess of carbon dioxide in the body usually caused by interruption of breathing or insufficient oxygen supply and resulting in unconsciousness and often death

Medical Definition

asphyxia

noun

as·​phyx·​ia as-ˈfik-sē-ə, əs- 

: a lack of oxygen or excess of carbon dioxide in the body that is usually caused by interruption of breathing and that causes unconsciousness compare suffocation

asphyxial

-sē-əl 

adjective