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suffocation - 5 dictionary results

suf⋅fo⋅cate

  [suhf-uh-keyt] verb, -cat⋅ed, -cat⋅ing.
Use suffocation in a Sentence
–verb (used with object)
1. to kill by preventing the access of air to the blood through the lungs or analogous organs, as gills; strangle.
2. to impede the respiration of.
3. to discomfort by a lack of fresh or cool air.
4. to overcome or extinguish; suppress.
–verb (used without object)
5. to become suffocated; stifle; smother.
6. to be uncomfortable due to a lack of fresh or cool air.
Origin:
1520–30; < L suffōcātus (ptp. of suffōcāre to choke, stifle), equiv. to suf- suf- + -fōc- (comb. form of fauc-, s. of faucēs throat) + -ātus -ate 1

Related forms:
suf⋅fo⋅cat⋅ing⋅ly, adverb
suf⋅fo⋅ca⋅tion, noun
suf⋅fo⋅ca⋅tive, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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suf·fo·cate   (sŭf'ə-kāt')   
v.   suf·fo·cat·ed, suf·fo·cat·ing, suf·fo·cates

v.   tr.
  1. To kill or destroy by preventing access of air or oxygen.
  2. To impair the respiration of; asphyxiate.
  3. To cause discomfort to by or as if by cutting off the supply of fresh air.
  4. To suppress the development, imagination, or creativity of; stifle: "The rigid formality of the place suffocated her" (Thackeray).
v.   intr.
  1. To die from lack of air or oxygen; be asphyxiated.
  2. To feel discomfort from lack of fresh air.
  3. To become or feel suppressed; be stifled.

[Latin suffōcāre, suffōcāt- : sub-, sub- + faucēs, throat.]
suf'fo·ca'ting·ly adv., suf'fo·ca'tion n., suf'fo·ca'tive adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Suffocation

Suf`fo*ca"tion\, n. [L. suffocatio: cf. F. suffocation.] The act of suffocating, or the state of being suffocated; death caused by smothering or choking.

Note: The term suffocation is sometimes employed synonymously with asphyxia. In the strict medico-legal sense it signifies asphyxia induced by obstruction of the respiration otherwise than by direct pressure on the neck (hanging, strangulation) or submersion (drowning). --Quain.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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suffocation 
1460 (implied in pp. adj. suffocate), from M.Fr. suffocation, from L. suffocationem (nom. suffocatio) "a choking, stifling," from suffocatus, pp. of suffocare "suffocate," originally "to narrow up," from sub "up (from under)" + fauces (pl.) "throat, narrow entrance."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Main Entry: suf·fo·ca·tion
Pronunciation: "s&f-&-'kA-sh&n
Function: noun
: the act of suffocating or state of beingsuffocated : stoppage of breathing —compare ASPHYXIA
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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