stifling
Use Stifling in a sentence
flɪŋ adjective
suffocating; oppressively close: the stifling atmosphere of the cavern.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
verb (used with object)
1.
to quell, crush, or end by force: to stifle a revolt; to stifle free expression.
2.
to suppress, curb, or withhold: to stifle a yawn.
3.
to kill by impeding respiration; smother.
verb (used without object)
4.
to suffer from difficulty in breathing, as in a close atmosphere.
5.
to become stifled or suffocated.
Origin:
1350–1400; Middle English < Old Norse stīfla to stop up, dam, akin to stīfr stiff
1350–1400; Middle English < Old Norse stīfla to stop up, dam, akin to stīfr stiff
Related forms
sti·fler, noun
un·sti·fled, adjective
Synonyms
1. prevent, preclude, put down. 2. check. 3. suffocate, strangle, choke.
1. prevent, preclude, put down. 2. check. 3. suffocate, strangle, choke.
Antonyms
1, 2. encourage.
1, 2. encourage.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source
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Link To stifling
00:10
Stifling
is always a great word to know.
So is zedonk. Does it mean:
| the offspring of a zebra and a donkey. |
| a scrap or morsel of food left at a meal. |
Collins
World English Dictionary
stifle1 (ˈstaɪfəl) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —vb | |
| 1. | (tr) to smother or suppress: stifle a cough |
| 2. | to feel or cause to feel discomfort and difficulty in breathing |
| 3. | to prevent or be prevented from breathing so as to cause death |
| 4. | (tr) to crush or stamp out |
| [C14: variant of stuflen, probably from Old French estouffer to smother] | |
| 'stifler1 | |
| —n | |
| stifle2 (ˈstaɪfəl) | |
| —n | |
| the joint in the hind leg of a horse, dog, etc, between the femur and tibia | |
| [C14: of unknown origin] | |
| stifling (ˈstaɪflɪŋ) | |
| —adj | |
| oppressively hot or stuffy: a stifling atmosphere | |
| 'stiflingly | |
| —adv | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
stifle
late 14c., "to choke, suffocate, drown," of uncertain origin, possibly an alteration of O.Fr. estouffer "to stifle, smother," which may be from a Gmc. source (cf. O.H.G. stopfon "to plug up, stuff"). Metaphoric sense is from 1570s.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Example sentences
Eight woolen bodies, shoulder to shoulder, turning a heavy crank shaft in a stifling metal tube.
The act has also been accused of stifling risk-taking and increasing directors' pay.
Nations need to curb their public debt to avoid stifling future growth.
The stifling of questions cannot possibly be good teaching.
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