as in strangled
Related Words
Relevance
Dissimilar Words
1
as in throttled
to keep (someone) from breathing by exerting pressure on the windpipe
let go of my throat—you're choking me!
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
3
as in drowned
to be or cause to be killed by lack of breathable air
thick, black smoke choked the trapped firefighters
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in blocked
to prevent passage through by filling with something
overgrown bushes choked the narrow alleyway between the buildings
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of choked
Stephen Smith, CBS News, 5 Jan. 2026
The woman, in her 80s, choked on daifuku — mochi filled with sweet bean paste — at her home in Minato Ward just after midnight on New Year’s Day and was later pronounced dead at a hospital.
—Moná Thomas, PEOPLE, 5 Jan. 2026
Meanwhile, the entire West was on fire, trails already choked with deadfall from decades-ago blazes even as new ones torched millions more acres every season.
—Literary Hub, 22 Dec. 2025
The Amundsen Sea became choked with icebergs produced from all directions.
—Keiji Horikawa, The Conversation, 22 Dec. 2025
According to a criminal complaint, Flores-Ruiz hit his roommate more than two dozen times in the head and choked him for several seconds.
—John Diedrich, jsonline.com, 15 Dec. 2025
To one side, the marsh spreads across more than 20 square miles of pools and islands choked with cattails and phragmites, convoys of pelicans descending and splashing down for a rest on their journey south from the Great Salt Lake or other western waters.
—Brandon Loomis, AZCentral.com, 15 Dec. 2025
But the evening wasn’t without late-game drama, as the Wildcats choked away an early 18-point lead as the 49ers cut the margin down to two with less than 30 seconds to play.
—Hunter Bailey, Charlotte Observer, 12 Nov. 2025
From long before dawn until well past dark, similar rafts choked the river, packed with as many as 20 migrants per raft.
—Daniel Gonzalez, USA Today, 9 Nov. 2025
Verb
In 2022, four women choked to death on the rice cakes and 12 other people were hospitalized.
—Stephen Smith, CBS News, 5 Jan. 2026
The woman, in her 80s, choked on daifuku — mochi filled with sweet bean paste — at her home in Minato Ward just after midnight on New Year’s Day and was later pronounced dead at a hospital.
—Moná Thomas, PEOPLE, 5 Jan. 2026
Meanwhile, the entire West was on fire, trails already choked with deadfall from decades-ago blazes even as new ones torched millions more acres every season.
—Literary Hub, 22 Dec. 2025
The Amundsen Sea became choked with icebergs produced from all directions.
—Keiji Horikawa, The Conversation, 22 Dec. 2025
According to a criminal complaint, Flores-Ruiz hit his roommate more than two dozen times in the head and choked him for several seconds.
—John Diedrich, jsonline.com, 15 Dec. 2025
To one side, the marsh spreads across more than 20 square miles of pools and islands choked with cattails and phragmites, convoys of pelicans descending and splashing down for a rest on their journey south from the Great Salt Lake or other western waters.
—Brandon Loomis, AZCentral.com, 15 Dec. 2025
But the evening wasn’t without late-game drama, as the Wildcats choked away an early 18-point lead as the 49ers cut the margin down to two with less than 30 seconds to play.
—Hunter Bailey, Charlotte Observer, 12 Nov. 2025
From long before dawn until well past dark, similar rafts choked the river, packed with as many as 20 migrants per raft.
—Daniel Gonzalez, USA Today, 9 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for choked
Verb
-
Clancy allegedly strangled her three children and then tried to kill herself by jumping out a window in 2023, leaving her paralyzed from the sternum down.—
Colleen Cronin,
Boston Herald,
7 Jan. 2026
-
Stefon Diggs allegedly strangled his female chef over money earlier this month.—
Ryan Morik,
FOXNews.com,
31 Dec. 2025
Verb
-
Some of the soldiers vomited, and others experienced weakness in their legs when exiting the Ajax vehicles, Britain's The Times reported.—
Matthew Robinson,
MSNBC Newsweek,
26 Nov. 2025
-
Katy Puig vomited a gush of seawater as a boater hoisted her unconscious body out of the water, fighting the current to get her to a yacht that had come to the rescue before first responders arrived in a flotilla.—
David Goodhue,
Miami Herald,
19 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
And a mom and dad promote ocean safety after their son drowned.—
Sharon Chin,
CBS News,
8 Jan. 2026
-
On June 20, 2001, in the Houston suburb of Clear Lake, Andrea Yates drowned her five children—Noah, John, Paul, Luke, and Mary—in the family bathtub.—
Isabella Wandermurem,
Time,
6 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
But a holding penalty put the Rams behind the sticks and forced a punt, which Isaiah Simmons blocked to set the Panthers up the Rams 30.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
11 Jan. 2026
-
James missed a driving layup for the lead that was blocked by Giannis Antetokounmpo.—
Broderick Turner,
Los Angeles Times,
10 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Interactions with his wife’s family remain strained; to this day, no one has told 99-year-old Nana that Webster was in prison.—
Jamie Thompson,
The Atlantic,
6 Jan. 2026
-
That reunion marked the first time that the father and son had seen each other in 19 months amid their strained relationship.—
Stephanie Petit,
PEOPLE,
5 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The Hoosiers — who, like Tech, lose their first-ever playoff game last season and might’ve been expected to fizzle — beat Ohio State in the Big 10 championship game to clinch the bracket’s top seed and throttled Alabama in the Rose Bowl to make the playoff committee look smart for the decision.—
Shawn McFarland,
Dallas Morning News,
2 Jan. 2026
-
Putin's regime has banned Facebook and Instagram and severely throttled other platforms such as X, formerly Twitter.—
Alexander Smith,
NBC news,
24 Dec. 2025
Verb
-
From there, the Badgers defense suffocated Washington.—
Ira Gorawara,
New York Times,
9 Nov. 2025
-
As the Netflix series often attempted to bring light to the real mistreatment faced by incarcerated people, Poussey’s death at the hands of a police officer who suffocated her was intended to shed light on the real police brutality Black inmates in particular face.—
Catherine Mhloyi,
Them.,
29 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Sebastian was intubated because the swelling from the burns obstructed his airway, reducing his ability to breathe normally, Reynoso added.—
Caelyn Pender,
Mercury News,
6 Nov. 2025
-
But the house, originally built in the 1960s, felt clunky thanks to a massive fireplace that obstructed views and odd layouts with far too many twists and turns.—
Vaishnavi Nayel Talawadekar,
Architectural Digest,
4 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Choked.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/choked. Accessed 12 Jan. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share