choke

[ chohk ]

verb (used with object)

, choked, chok·ing.

1. to stop the breath of by squeezing or obstructing the windpipe; strangle; stifle.
2. to stop by or as if by strangling or stifling:

   The sudden wind choked his words.

3. to stop by filling; obstruct; clog:

   Grease choked the drain.

   Synonyms: plug, dam, block

4. to suppress (a feeling, emotion, etc.) (often followed by back or down ):

   I managed to choke back my tears.

5. to fill chock-full:

   The storeroom was choked with furniture.

6. to seize (a log, felled tree, etc.) with a chain, cable, or the like, so as to facilitate removal.
7. to enrich the fuel mixture of (an internal-combustion engine) by diminishing the air supply to the carburetor.
8. Sports. to grip (a bat, racket, or the like) farther than usual from the end of the handle; shorten one's grip on (often followed by up ).

verb (used without object)

, choked, chok·ing.

1. to suffer from or as from strangling or suffocating:

   He choked on a piece of food.

2. to become obstructed, clogged, or otherwise stopped:

   The words choked in her throat.

noun

1. the act or sound of choking.
2. a mechanism by which the air supply to the carburetor of an internal-combustion engine can be diminished or stopped.
3. Machinery. any mechanism that, by blocking a passage, regulates the flow of air, gas, etc.
4. Electricity. choke coil.
5. a narrowed part, as in a chokebore.
6. the bristly upper portion of the receptacle of the artichoke.

verb phrase

1. 1. to become or cause to become speechless, as from the effect of emotion or stress:

      She choked up over the sadness of the tale.

   2. to become too tense or nervous to perform well:

      Our team began to choke up in the last inning.

2. to stop or obstruct by or as by choking:

   to choke off a nation's fuel supply.

choke

/ tʃəʊk /

verb

1. tr to hinder or stop the breathing of (a person or animal), esp by constricting the windpipe or by asphyxiation
2. intr to have trouble or fail in breathing, swallowing, or speaking
3. tr to block or clog up (a passage, pipe, street, etc)
4. tr to retard the growth or action of

   the weeds are choking my plants

5. tr to suppress (emotion)

   she choked her anger

6. slang.
   intr to die
7. tr to enrich the petrol-air mixture by reducing the air supply to (a carburettor, petrol engine, etc)
8. intr (esp in sport) to be seized with tension and fail to perform well

noun

1. the act or sound of choking
2. a device in the carburettor of a petrol engine that enriches the petrol-air mixture by reducing the air supply
3. any constriction or mechanism for reducing the flow of a fluid in a pipe, tube, etc
4. Also calledchoke coil electronics an inductor having a relatively high impedance, used to prevent the passage of high frequencies or to smooth the output of a rectifier
5. the inedible centre of the head of an artichoke

Derived Forms

• ˈchokeable, adjective

Other Words From

• chokea·ble adjective
• inter·choke verb (used with object) interchoked interchoking
• un·chokea·ble adjective
• un·choked adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of choke¹

1150–1200; Middle English choken, cheken, variant of achoken, acheken, Old English ācēocian to suffocate; akin to Old Norse kōk gullet

Word History and Origins

Origin of choke¹

Old English ācēocian, of Germanic origin; related to cheek

Example Sentences

“I know it sounds so simple and naive, but I don’t understand how the bad guy keeps winning,” she says, choking up, her soft voice tinged with disbelief.

From Los Angeles Times

Opponents contend that the lands are safeguarded by existing designations and that giving them monument status will unfairly choke off recreation, such as offroading, and small-scale mining.

From Los Angeles Times

Air pollution in India's capital Delhi has soared to extremely severe levels, choking residents and engulfing the city in thick smog.

From BBC

Mr Stockton told paramedics he believed Charlie had appeared to be choking on a biscuit, but further investigation after the child's death showed that could "not have been", Mr Lumley said.

From BBC

“Every year, the noose tightens a little more. We finally have a mandate to delete the mountain of choking regulations that do not serve the greater good.”

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• clog
• congest
• drown
• fill
• gag
• gasp
• kill
• stifle
• strangle
• suffocate