asphyxiate

verb as·phyx·i·ate \ -sē-ˌāt \

|Updated on: 3 Jun 2018

Definition of asphyxiate

asphyxiated; asphyxiating

: to cause asphyxia in : to kill, suspend animation in, or make unconscious through want of adequate oxygen, presence of noxious agents, or other obstruction to normal breathing

The murder victim was asphyxiated.

intransitive verb

: to become asphyxiated

… ended in several deaths, including that of a … secretary who asphyxiated during a smoke bombing.
—Robert I. Friedman

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asphyxiation

play \as-ˌfik-sē-ˈā-shən, əs-\ noun

See asphyxiate defined for English-language learners

See asphyxiate defined for kids

Recent Examples of asphyxiate from the Web

Her character is raped and kills herself by asphyxiating herself in a kitchen oven.

— david belcher, BostonGlobe.com, "Patricia Morison, 103, Broadway’s first Kate to be kissed," 21 May 2018
But her death also released him, psychically, from the vanished world of the fin-de-siècle black élite, with its asphyxiating diktats.

— tobi haslett, The New Yorker, "The Man Who Led the Harlem Renaissance—and His Hidden Hungers," 11 May 2018
They were asphyxiated with their dog after seeking shelter in their wine cellar.

— robin abcarian, latimes.com, "The perils of rebuilding after a devastating wildfire: toxic water, contaminated soil and woefully inadequate insurance policies," 13 Apr. 2018
Many victims, some barely out of their teens, were burned or asphyxiated.

— ana vanessa herrero, New York Times, "Anguished Mourners Beg for Answers After Jail Fire in Venezuela," 30 Mar. 2018
Kyle, who died April 10, asphyxiated in the back of his van despite making two desperate 911 calls for help.

— sharon coolidge, Cincinnati.com, "Kyle Plush investigation: Report release and hearing on death abruptly canceled," 1 May 2018
Introduced in 2011, this system for allocating number plates aims to tackle the city’s problems of rage-inducing congestion and asphyxiating pollution.

— The Economist, "Why a licence plate costs more than a car in Shanghai," 19 Apr. 2018
Almost exactly a year later, on April 7th, chemical weapons—chlorine and perhaps even stronger agents—again rained death on Eastern Ghouta, asphyxiating more than forty civilians in the town of Douma.

— junot díaz, The New Yorker, "Trump’s Erratic Threats to Bashar al-Assad," 15 Apr. 2018
Joe, who lives with his mother in a rundown apartment in New York City, suffers from visions of his own childhood abuse and combat trauma, and frequently contemplates suicide, sometimes going so far as to semi-asphyxiate himself with a plastic bag.

— christopher orr, The Atlantic, "You Were Never Really Here Is Never Really Here," 13 Apr. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'asphyxiate.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of asphyxiate

see asphyxia

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1836

in the meaning defined at transitive sense

See Words from the same year

ASPHYXIATE Defined for Kids

asphyxiate

verb as·phyx·i·ate \ as-ˈfik-sē-ˌāt \

Definition of asphyxiate for Students

asphyxiated; asphyxiating

: to cause (as a person) to become unconscious or die by cutting off the normal taking in of oxygen whether by blocking breathing or by replacing the oxygen of the air with another gas

Medical Dictionary

asphyxiate

verb as·phyx·i·ate \ -sē-ˌāt \

medical Definition of asphyxiate

asphyxiated; asphyxiating

transitive verb

: to cause asphyxia in; also : to kill or make unconscious through inadequate oxygen, presence of noxious agents, or other obstruction to normal breathing

intransitive verb

: to become asphyxiated

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