as in strangling
to cause (someone) to stop breathing and often to become unconscious and die
The murder victim was asphyxiated.
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Recent Examples of asphyxiating
Officer Derek Chauvin, who is white, then knelt on Floyd’s neck for nine minutes, asphyxiating him.
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Nancy M. Preyor-Johnson, San Antonio Express-News, 16 Jan. 2026
Nancy M. Preyor-Johnson, San Antonio Express-News, 16 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for asphyxiating
Verb
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In early January 2025, police were called to the Aliquippa VFW when Ours was accused of repeatedly punching and strangling another man, later identified as Preston Coleman.—
Mike Darnay,
CBS News,
17 Mar. 2026
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Jorge Landeros, 56, was sentenced to 25 years in prison more than a decade after reportedly fatally beating and strangling a 52-year-old American University accounting professor in her Maryland home.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
13 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Each year in the United States, drowning causes roughly 4,500 deaths, while infections from brain-eating amoebas typically number only two or three.—
Alejandro Hortal-Sánchez,
The Conversation,
24 Mar. 2026
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Children with autism are at heightened risk of drowning for the issues Na’Sean’s parents described, experts say.—
Richard Tribou,
The Orlando Sentinel,
23 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Asphyxiating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/asphyxiating. Accessed 30 Mar. 2026.
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