as in to choke
to keep (someone) from breathing by exerting pressure on the windpipe
I was so angry at what he was saying that I could have throttled him!
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Recent Examples of throttle
The matchup dynamic is fairly straightforward in that Saint Denis is a super aggressive, pace grappler who has throttled most of his competition on the mat.
—
Brett Appley, New York Times, 31 Jan. 2026
Between the Good and Pretti shootings, GOP operatives had been hammering how Democratic incumbents and challengers in competitive 2026 midterm races were embracing anti-ICE positions, which echoed those previous calls to throttle the agency.
—Phillip M. Bailey, USA Today, 29 Jan. 2026
Behind Staubach, Dallas cruised through the playoffs with relative ease and throttled Miami in the Super Bowl, capturing the first championship in team history.
—R.j. Coyle, Dallas Morning News, 27 Jan. 2026
Iran’s regime responded by surging online, first to throttle the protests and then to construct a sophisticated web of censorship and information control.
—Ilan Berman, Forbes.com, 26 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for throttle
Brett Appley, New York Times, 31 Jan. 2026
Between the Good and Pretti shootings, GOP operatives had been hammering how Democratic incumbents and challengers in competitive 2026 midterm races were embracing anti-ICE positions, which echoed those previous calls to throttle the agency.
—Phillip M. Bailey, USA Today, 29 Jan. 2026
Behind Staubach, Dallas cruised through the playoffs with relative ease and throttled Miami in the Super Bowl, capturing the first championship in team history.
—R.j. Coyle, Dallas Morning News, 27 Jan. 2026
Iran’s regime responded by surging online, first to throttle the protests and then to construct a sophisticated web of censorship and information control.
—Ilan Berman, Forbes.com, 26 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for throttle
Recent Examples of Synonyms for throttle
Verb
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Israeli settler violence and settlement expansion has grown, and daily Palestinian life has been choked by movement restrictions and military raids.—
Daniel Estrin,
NPR,
13 Feb. 2026
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The partygoers don’t really know how to react until Stab interrupts the performance to choke Kid out, and then everyone becomes horrified.—
Alphonse Pierre,
Pitchfork,
13 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Reports later revealed that the Turpin parents restricted the food their children could eat, left several of them in a home alone to fend for themselves, and imprisoned, beat, and strangled their kids.—
Stephanie Kaloi,
PEOPLE,
4 Feb. 2026
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According to the indictment, McCray is accused of strangling the victim.—
Angie DiMichele,
Sun Sentinel,
3 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Throttle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/throttle. Accessed 14 Feb. 2026.
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