1,400 new words in our dictionary! — Parasocial, glow-up, promposal & more
1,400 new words in our dictionary! — More

garrotes

verb

variants or garottes
present tense third-person singular of garrote
as in strangles
to keep (someone) from breathing by exerting pressure on the windpipe the goons sent by the loan shark threatened to garrote the hero with his own necktie

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for garrotes
  1. strangles
  2. chokes
  3. throttles
Verb
  • More news Heat sets new records as oppressive humidity strangles Southern California.
    — Jack Dolan, Los Angeles Times, 10 Sep. 2026
  • Adler said studies show that when one partner strangles another, the likelihood of a victim being killed by that partner goes up 750%.
    — Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 28 July 2026
Definition of strangles
Verb
  • One boy loops his arm around the student’s neck and chokes him.
    — Jennifer Smith Richards, ProPublica, 24 July 2026
  • Remove chokes from artichokes and steam in small amount of water for 15 minutes, adding water to pan as needed.
    — Philip Potempa, Chicago Tribune, 26 June 2026
Definition of chokes
Verb
  • Mansfield Legacy throttles Crowley Mansfield Legacy piled on the hits against Crowley Friday, seizing a 17-1 victory in a game that ended after three innings.
    — Charles Baggarly, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 11 Apr. 2026
  • Records could also be topped in Las Vegas and Phoenix through the weekend as the early-season desert heat wave throttles up.
    — Doyle Rice, USA Today, 12 Mar. 2026
Definition of throttles
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

garroted
garrotes
garroting
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Garrotes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/garrotes. Accessed 18 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of churlish

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

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

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

Words from the 'Odyssey'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 18
See More

Popular

See More

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
crayons-in-a-circle
Guess the Color Quiz Questions that use the whole box of crayons.
See All