as in strangling
to cause (someone) to stop breathing and often to become unconscious and die
The murder victim was asphyxiated.
Related Words
Relevance
Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for asphyxiating
Verb
-
Maeve is in the hen house with Jayson, banging his gun around and nearly strangling her.—
Grace Byron,
Vulture,
20 Oct. 2025 -
Rader would often stalk his victims, some for months, before binding their arms and legs, then slowly strangling them (with the exception of Bright).—
Jessica Sager,
PEOPLE,
11 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Everyone can participate without drowning in a sea of sameness, à la the Labubu epidemic of 2025.—
Sam Reed,
Glamour,
10 Oct. 2025
-
Robinson is Henry, a runaway slave from a plantation in southern Texas; Quijada is Carlos, a former medic in the Mexican army who rescues Henry from drowning in the Rio Grande but remains suspicious of him.—
Jackson McHenry,
Vulture,
8 Oct. 2025
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.
Cite this Entry
“Asphyxiating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/asphyxiating. Accessed 23 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share