1
as in to strangle
to be or cause to be killed by lack of breathable air
unfortunately, the robbers were stifled when they got trapped in the airless bank vault
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to suppress
to refrain from openly showing or uttering
stifled a yawn
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of stifle
Between hugs and stifled tears, players walked up to sift through them.
—
Mitch Bannon, New York Times, 2 Nov. 2025
The space was stifling in the Louisiana heat, so fans were blowing for everyone inside.
—Luke Chinman, PEOPLE, 31 Oct. 2025
Like the face-to-face collaboration benefits lost at GISS, employees fear shutting down Goddard's cafeteria will be stifling.
—Josh Dinner, Space.com, 31 Oct. 2025
Suárez could be awfully effective in San Francisco with the marine layer stifling deep fly balls on chilly nights by the bay.
—Jackson Roberts, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for stifle
Mitch Bannon, New York Times, 2 Nov. 2025
The space was stifling in the Louisiana heat, so fans were blowing for everyone inside.
—Luke Chinman, PEOPLE, 31 Oct. 2025
Like the face-to-face collaboration benefits lost at GISS, employees fear shutting down Goddard's cafeteria will be stifling.
—Josh Dinner, Space.com, 31 Oct. 2025
Suárez could be awfully effective in San Francisco with the marine layer stifling deep fly balls on chilly nights by the bay.
—Jackson Roberts, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for stifle
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stifle
Verb
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The man previously on Florida’s Death Row for beating, stabbing and strangling a La Carreta waitress with a rice cooker — before lighting a blaze to destroy key evidence — should be condemned to die, Miami prosecutors told a jury after detailing the slaying on Wednesday morning.—
Grethel Aguila,
Miami Herald,
5 Nov. 2025
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Their strategy seems to be to strangle the capital and provoke unrest against the military junta.—
Tim Lister,
CNN Money,
2 Nov. 2025
Verb
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The weight-loss drugs known as glucagon-like peptide-1 drugs, or GLP-1s, suppress the appetite of users, leading to weight loss.—
Ken Alltucker,
USA Today,
6 Nov. 2025
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The experimental once-weekly drug, eloralintide, belongs to the class of drugs that mimic the pancreatic hormone amylin which slows digestion and suppresses hunger.—
Reuters,
NBC news,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
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The boy buried his face in his hands, and the thick nest of hair shook as if in a wind, and the sobs, though muffled, grew louder.—
George Packer,
The Atlantic,
6 Nov. 2025
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Ignore that muffled screaming in the distance, that’s just the TV overlords punching air.—
Steven Louis Goldstein,
New York Times,
28 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The drought has also set the stage for devastating wildfires in Brazil that have destroyed huge swaths of the Amazon as well as the Pantanal, the world’s largest tropical wetlands, and choked cities in thick smoke.—
Laura Paddison,
CNN Money,
6 Nov. 2025
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For younger children, this is a matter of safety, as toys intended for older kids can contain small pieces that pose choking hazards or materials that aren’t safe to chew on.—
Anja Webb,
Parents,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Signs and symptoms – which can take several weeks to develop – may include constipation, poor feeding, loss of head control, difficulty swallowing and a weak and altered cry, which can progress to difficulty breathing and respiratory arrest.—
Jacqueline Howard,
CNN Money,
11 Nov. 2025
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Symptoms include constipation, poor feeding, drooping eyelid, weak muscle tone, difficulty swallowing and breathing problems, among others.—
Jonel Aleccia,
Fortune,
11 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Burn a candle, for example, and the flame will quickly smother itself as smoke crowds around the wick with no oxygen to feed it.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
4 Nov. 2025
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Smothered Turf The wet leaves smother the grass by blocking sunlight, reducing photosynthesis, and slowing oxygen flow to the soil.—
Mary Marlowe Leverette,
Southern Living,
30 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Perceptive politicians understand that a rising opposition force that aims to replace the entire system has to be co-opted, not simply repressed.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
5 Nov. 2025
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This week is pushing you to speak up and stop repressing your truth.—
Valerie Mesa,
PEOPLE,
24 Oct. 2025
Verb
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But for this to work, these supercities must have freedom from the bureaucratic maze that suffocates current development.—
Zoltan Istvan,
MSNBC Newsweek,
5 Nov. 2025
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There’s nothing Vlasic would love more than to be the next Los Angeles Kings, suffocating teams and limiting chances.—
Mark Lazerus,
New York Times,
2 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Stifle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stifle. Accessed 14 Nov. 2025.
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