CHOKING Synonyms: 69 Similar and Opposite Words

choking

verb

Definition of choking

present participle of choke

as in strangling

to keep (someone) from breathing by exerting pressure on the windpipe let go of my throat—you're choking me!

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in vomiting

to experience complete or partial blockage of the windpipe the recommended procedure for helping someone who is choking

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as in drowning

to be or cause to be killed by lack of breathable air thick, black smoke choked the trapped firefighters

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as in blocking

to prevent passage through by filling with something overgrown bushes choked the narrow alleyway between the buildings

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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 choking Hazardous smoke spread across both the United States and Canada, choking large cities such as New York. — ABC News, 6 Aug. 2026 The friends told investigators that Nunnally grew angry and jealous multiple times that night, at one point choking Evans against the wall until the two friends pulled him off her. — Caroline Kubzansky, Chicago Tribune, 5 Aug. 2026 He was also charged with assaulting a police officer who responded after witnesses allegedly saw Bryant choking his wife. — Bobby Burack Outkick, FOXNews.com, 4 Aug. 2026 The ruling may also be choking local businesses that rely on Haitian customers, like Golden Blue Bar & Restaurant, a Haitian eatery on Flatbush Ave. — Emma Seiwell, New York Daily News, 1 Aug. 2026 Blackwell was charged with strangulation and simple assault after allegedly grabbing his girlfriend by her wrist and choking her on April 4, according to the criminal complaint. — Patrick Damp, CBS News, 30 July 2026 Cotton is one of more than 100 million people across the Midwest, Northeast and mid-Atlantic breathing in dangerous air brought by thick, choking plumes of smoke from wildfires in Canada. — Dalia Faheid, CNN Money, 18 July 2026 The trend, which was popular on TikTok at the time, involves intentionally choking oneself or holding one’s breath until passing out. — Toria Sheffield, PEOPLE, 18 July 2026 Art Fairs are simultaneously choking the life out of some galleries while trying to give offer them a breath of fresh air via alternative models and boutique sensibilities. — Daniel Cassady, ARTnews.com, 17 July 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for choking

Verb

After strangling the children in the basement of her home with exercise bands, Clancy attempted to kill herself by jumping out of the window of her Duxbury home, leaving her paralyzed.

— Colleen Cronin, Boston Herald, 3 Aug. 2026
Prosecutors allege that Lindsay methodically planned the murders by sending her husband to pick up medication and takeout, and then strangling the children with exercise bands at their Duxbury, Massachusetts, home.

— Melina Khan, USA Today, 30 July 2026

Definition of strangling

Verb

Any attempt to recapture their childhoods was quickly quashed, however, as exemplified by Dee getting her hair caught in a drop-tower ride and Dennis vomiting right next to her.

— Dennis Perkins, Entertainment Weekly, 28 July 2026
Soap and water keep you safe, though, so if someone around you is vomiting or has diarrhea, Griffin says, head for the sink.

— Angela Haupt, Time, 27 July 2026

Definition of vomiting

Verb

The Besselian Elements team has added terrain shadows at totality time, but also a way of recognizing that the clouds blocking an eclipse may not actually be above the observer.

— Jamie Carter, Forbes.com, 7 Aug. 2026
Under the new campaign, vehicles that present a traffic hazard, such as blocking traffic lanes, walkways, fire hydrants, or driveways will be removed and impounded.

— Julie Sharp, CBS News, 6 Aug. 2026

Definition of blocking

Verb

Former Portage Mayor James Snyder wants a federal appeals court to dismiss his case stemming from his November 2016 indictment, which included a charge of obstructing the IRS.

— Alexandra Kukulka, Chicago Tribune, 5 Aug. 2026
The New Jersey facility has repeatedly been accused by state and local inspectors of obstructing health and safety inspections and has been the site of ongoing protests and detainee hunger strikes over food quality, overcrowding and medical care.

— Emma Bussey , Bill Melugin, FOXNews.com, 4 Aug. 2026

Definition of obstructing

Verb

There have been instances historically of drones crash-landing throughout the conflict due to electronic jamming as both Ukraine and Russia have used jamming to defend against incoming drones.

— CBS News, CBS News, 4 Aug. 2026
Drones are vulnerable to jamming and require constant recharging, which, because of their thermal signatures, electromagnetic signals, and charging noises, can give away troop positions.

— Anna Mulrine Grobe, Christian Science Monitor, 31 July 2026

Definition of jamming

Verb

Stale, incomplete or blocked data leaves AI filling gaps with guesses that still sound certain.

— Vaidotas Juknys, Forbes.com, 4 Aug. 2026
While most of the onigiri in Japanese convenience stores and markets is designed for snacking, Choe’s onigiri are hulking, chunky rounded triangles of rice and filling that each weigh at least half a pound.

— Jenn Harris, Los Angeles Times, 3 Aug. 2026