CHOKED (BACK) Synonyms: 29 Similar and Opposite Words

choked (back)

verb

past tense of choke (back)

as in stifled

to refrain from openly showing or uttering choked back a sarcastic reply to an insulting question

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for choked (back)

Verb

While Odebunmi was producing for Cleveland, the Cavaliers largely stifled Birmingham’s top offensive threat, wide receiver Paul Turner.

— Joel Beers, Los Angeles Times, 3 Oct. 2026
The Falcons dominated the second half with their offense, and the defense stifled the Packers and quarterback Jordan Love.

— Rod Beard, AJC.com, 25 Sep. 2026

Definition of stifled

Verb

Some of the footage was played during a dayslong suppression hearing last December, when the defense argued evidence recovered during the arrest should be suppressed because Mangione’s backpack was improperly searched.

— Nicki Brown, CNN Money, 2 Oct. 2026
The video included much of what was played during a three-week evidentiary hearing when defense attorneys argued the evidence should be suppressed.

— Aaron Katersky, ABC News, 2 Oct. 2026

Definition of suppressed

Verb

The international cooperation that Kirchwey and Bernal called for was swallowed within months by the politics of the Cold War, which would end up bringing the world to the brink of annihilation more than once.

— Richard Kreitner, Washington Post, 29 Sep. 2026
In what probably should’ve been a tell, when AT&T acquired it in 2018, the telecom swallowed Time Warner whole and there was no trace of the Warner name.

— Erik Hayden, HollywoodReporter, 28 Sep. 2026

Definition of swallowed

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.

Browse Nearby Words

choked

choked (back)

choked off

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Choked (back).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/choked%20%28back%29. Accessed 6 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of choked (back)

verb

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

regimen

Popular in Grammar & Usage

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Popular in Wordplay

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Popular

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List

Games & Quizzes