choke out

phrasal verb

choked out; choking out; chokes out
: to say (something) with difficulty because of strong emotion
She tearfully choked out an apology.
He just managed to choke a reply out.

Examples of choke out in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Nutrient pollution and human development had set off algae blooms that choked out any other plants in the water—including the eelgrass that manatees rely on. Carlyn Kranking, Smithsonian Magazine, 6 Sep. 2024 Spike [Fearn], who plays my brother Bjorn, trying to take that off my face and passing out after getting choked out by the tail and then immediately having to match my breathing was very intense. William Earl, Variety, 17 Aug. 2024 Phosphorous fuels algal blooms, and once unleashed into the Everglades, allows plants such as cattails to choke out natural vegetation. Bill Kearney, Sun Sentinel, 25 July 2024 Intensive agricultural usage, long promoted by government funding, gives way to the rampant spread of bracken — a type of fern that, left to its own devices, grows upwards of six feet, choking out any other life. Tom Vanderbilt, Travel + Leisure, 25 June 2024 Back then Los Angeles was so choked out by smog that visibility dropped to dangerously low levels, and now there are more cars on California roads than ever before. Logan Carter / Jalopnik, Quartz, 21 June 2024 Watch Colin Bridgerton stumbling through breakfast with his family choking out the sentence that yes, Penelope is … a good acquaintance … of … the whole … family. Maggie Fremont, Vulture, 16 May 2024 At the state level, excessive regulations and taxes are choking out small businesses, and the people making money from legal cannabis are the same people who always make money. Mary Jane Gibson, Rolling Stone, 20 Apr. 2024 These plants can choke out native ecosystems and kill off beneficial native plants. Karl Schneider, The Indianapolis Star, 19 Apr. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'choke out.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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Cite this Entry

“Choke out.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/choke%20out. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.

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