1
as in choking
to be or cause to be killed by lack of breathable air
the gull got tangled in a piece of fishing line on the beach and was strangled
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in throttling
to keep (someone) from breathing by exerting pressure on the windpipe
the boy complained that he was being strangled by his tie
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in stifling
to refrain from openly showing or uttering
strangled a gasp of surprise upon hearing the news
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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Recent Examples of strangling
After two days in court, a Massachusetts jury found Diggs, 32, not guilty on Tuesday, May 5 of assaulting and strangling the former employee, Mila Adams, according to reports from NBC and USA Today.
—
Natasha Dye, PEOPLE, 5 May 2026
Horner told a false story about hitting the little girl with his van and then strangling her in a panic, according to testimony of the case’s lead investigator, Texas Ranger Job Espinoza.
—Amy McDaniel, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 4 May 2026
He’s accused of strangling Anna Kepner while the two of them shared a room on the Carnival Horizon.
—David Goodhue
april 29, Miami Herald, 29 Apr. 2026
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Wednesday that the blockade was strangling Iran’s economy.
—Bart Jansen, USA Today, 23 Apr. 2026
Dispatchers told officers that the man who called 911 confessed to strangling his grandmother to death, McCabe said.
—Kendrick Calfee, Kansas City Star, 18 Apr. 2026
The episode culminates with Vanessa dying in her hospital bed, sending Wilson into a fit of uncontrollable rage that ends with him strangling a man to death.
—Antonio Ferme, Variety, 15 Apr. 2026
His trouble with the law began in 2020, when he was arrested for allegedly strangling his girlfriend at an Oregon home.
—Julia Moore, People.com, 3 Jan. 2025
Prosecutors argued Spencer often would strategically give or withhold drugs from his victims, deprive them of sleep and food and threaten them with firearms or extreme physical violence, such as strangling them.
—Chris Ramirez, Journal Sentinel, 18 Dec. 2024
Natasha Dye, PEOPLE, 5 May 2026
Horner told a false story about hitting the little girl with his van and then strangling her in a panic, according to testimony of the case’s lead investigator, Texas Ranger Job Espinoza.
—Amy McDaniel, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 4 May 2026
He’s accused of strangling Anna Kepner while the two of them shared a room on the Carnival Horizon.
—David Goodhue
april 29, Miami Herald, 29 Apr. 2026
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Wednesday that the blockade was strangling Iran’s economy.
—Bart Jansen, USA Today, 23 Apr. 2026
Dispatchers told officers that the man who called 911 confessed to strangling his grandmother to death, McCabe said.
—Kendrick Calfee, Kansas City Star, 18 Apr. 2026
The episode culminates with Vanessa dying in her hospital bed, sending Wilson into a fit of uncontrollable rage that ends with him strangling a man to death.
—Antonio Ferme, Variety, 15 Apr. 2026
His trouble with the law began in 2020, when he was arrested for allegedly strangling his girlfriend at an Oregon home.
—Julia Moore, People.com, 3 Jan. 2025
Prosecutors argued Spencer often would strategically give or withhold drugs from his victims, deprive them of sleep and food and threaten them with firearms or extreme physical violence, such as strangling them.
—Chris Ramirez, Journal Sentinel, 18 Dec. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for strangling
Verb
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The audio recording captured the sounds of the ensuing attack, including banging, screaming, crying and choking.—
USA Today,
USA Today,
6 May 2026
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The mom of four explained that her children were eating dinner when the pre-teen started choking on a piece of food.—
Zoey Lyttle,
PEOPLE,
6 May 2026
Verb
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Birds eat and digest the seeds, then the plant grows in dense stands and blocks sunlight from reaching other young plants, overcrowding or stifling other species.—
Sarah Everett,
The Spruce,
11 May 2026
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Before Sunday’s game, the Charge had struggled to generate a ton of offense in general against a stifling Boston defense.—
Hailey Salvian,
New York Times,
10 May 2026
Verb
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The folks at the YMCA of Metro Denver believe that drowning deaths are completely preventable.—
Libby Smith,
CBS News,
13 May 2026
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An autopsy later determined that Perry died from acute effects of ketamine, as well as other contributing factors such as drowning, coronary artery disease and effects from buprenorphine, a medication used to treat opioid use disorder.—
Christine Pelisek,
PEOPLE,
13 May 2026
Verb
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Countries like the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Belarus, Bahrain, and Pakistan round out the top five, with all of them largely suppressing tools like VPNs and secure messaging apps that could allow people to coordinate without being surveilled by national authorities.—
Alan Henry,
PC Magazine,
8 May 2026
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Contraceptive pills, hormonal IUDs, birth-control implants, and Plan B all work by suppressing ovulation.—
Andréa Becker,
The Atlantic,
3 May 2026
Verb
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For all the attacking flair and brilliance that Desire Doué, Ousmane Dembélé and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia possess, their enthusiasm and tenacity to defend from the front makes this team almost suffocating to come up against.—
Aleks Klosok,
CNN Money,
6 May 2026
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Thirty-two points, 10 rebounds and 45 minutes of suffocating defense equated to one of the best two-way performances in Timberwolves playoff history.—
Jace Frederick,
Twin Cities,
2 May 2026
Verb
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Symptoms of salmonella poisoning Symptoms of salmonella poisoning usually start six hours to six days after swallowing the bacteria.—
Mary Walrath-Holdridge,
USA Today,
12 May 2026
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The brand's Bella stretch jeans are equally suitable, designed to fit without swallowing small frames.—
Tanya Sharma,
PEOPLE,
11 May 2026
Verb
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There’s probably a smart, chilling film to be made about the terrors of smothering and relentless adoration — one imagines what Rod Serling would have done with something like this — but this isn’t really that film.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
15 May 2026
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More recently, massive desalination plants, which often double as electric power plants, have been dumping hot brine that rapidly sinks, smothering life at the Gulf’s bottom, Riegl says.—
Meghan Bartels,
Scientific American,
14 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Strangling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/strangling. Accessed 16 May. 2026.
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