garrote

variants or garotte
Definition of garrotenext
as in to strangle
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

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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 garrote The baby, determined to have been full-term and most likely male, was likely garroted with twine shortly after he was born, Oliver said. — Kc Baker, PEOPLE, 17 Sep. 2026 That means the Senate's only practical effect is adding another point at which oligarch lobbyists can garrote popular policy. — Ryan Cooper, The Week, 29 Oct. 2021 Tony, unhindered by any sense of moral anguish, garrotes the man in broad daylight with a length of cable. — Adam Wilson, Harper's magazine, 16 Sep. 2019 Sometimes the line between good writing and bad writing can be as thin as the piano wire with which a madman garrotes his victims. — Laura Miller, Slate Magazine, 15 Aug. 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for garrote
Verb
  • While he was gone, she is accused of taking her three children — Cora, five, Dawson, three, and eight-month-old Callan — down to the basement in their family home and using exercise bands to strangle them.
    — CT Jones, Rolling Stone, 21 Sep. 2026
  • While on the phone with 911, Patrick entered the home and found that Lindsay had strangled the children.
    — Liam Quinn, PEOPLE, 20 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • He was brought to the prison infirmary, where numerous guards surrounded, punched, kicked, choked, dropped and manhandled him.
    — Colin Mixson, New York Daily News, 19 Sep. 2026
  • During their time dating, Flowers’ friends and family received a video of Plummer striking Flowers, choking her and throwing her to the ground, prosecutors said.
    — Allison Kiehl, Chicago Tribune, 18 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • Don’t throttle the goose who lays the golden eggs, don’t blast from the skies the albatross who guarantees fair winds.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 22 Sep. 2026
  • These are key fuel nodes for the Red Sea, made all the more vital as Iran throttles traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.
    — Rafi Schwartz, TheWeek, 21 Sep. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Garrote.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/garrote. Accessed 25 Sep. 2026.

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