choke
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choke¹
- /t͡ʃəʊk/ UK
- /t͡ʃoʊk/ US
Rhymes with -əʊk
Where it comes from
From Middle English choken (also cheken), from earlier acheken, from Old English āċēocian (“to choke”), probably derived from Old English ċēoce, ċēace (“jaw, cheek”), see cheek. Cognate with Icelandic kok (“throat”), koka (“to gulp”). See also achoke.
verb chokes · choking · choked · choak · choake
- To be unable to breathe because of obstruction of the windpipe (for instance food or other objects that go down the wrong way, or fumes or particles in the air that cause the throat to constrict). Ever since he choked on a bone, he has refused to eat fish.
-
To prevent (someone) from breathing or talking by strangling or filling the windpipe.
The collar of this shirt is too tight; it’s choking me.
Similar: asphyxiate, strangle, suffocate, throttle
-
To obstruct (a passage, etc.) by filling it up or clogging it.
to choke a cave passage with boulders and mud
Similar: block up, bung up, clog, congest, jam, obstruct, stop up
- To hinder or check, as growth, expansion, progress, etc.; to kill (a plant by robbing it of nutrients); to extinguish (fire by robbing it of oxygen). Now ’tis the spring, and weeds are shallow-rooted; Suffer them now, and they’ll o’ergrow the garden And choke the herbs for want of husbandry.
- To perform badly at a crucial stage of a competition, especially when one appears to be clearly winning. He has a lot of talent, but he tends to choke under pressure.
- To move one's fingers very close to the tip of a pencil, brush or other art tool. A brief tryout will demonstrate that the modified grip does indeed make it difficult to “choke” the pencil or apply excessive pressure to the paper.
- To hold the club or bat lower on the shaft in order to shorten one's swing. Take a grip with your right hand, slightly choked down from your normal grip.
-
To be checked or stopped, as if by choking
[…] the words choked in his throat.
Similar: stick
- To check or stop (an utterance or voice) as if by choking. A hundred times fain he would have spoke, but still his rising Passion choak’d his Words;
- To have a feeling of strangulation in one's throat as a result of passion or strong emotion. Grobstock began to choke with chagrin.
- To give (someone) a feeling of strangulation as a result of passion or strong emotion. […] I am very sensible how much the Gentlemen of Wit and Pleasure are apt to murmur, and be choqued at the Sight of so many daggled-tail Parsons, who happen to fall in their Way, and offend their Eyes […]
- To say (something) with one’s throat constricted (due to emotion, for example). ‘There is the padre!’ Kim choked as bare-headed Father Victor sailed down upon them from the veranda.
- To use the choke valve of (a vehicle) to adjust the air/fuel mixture in the engine. The engine caught, spluttered, and roared as Tom choked the car delicately.
- To reach a condition of maximum flowrate, due to the flow at the narrowest point of the duct becoming sonic (Ma = 1).
- To make or install a choke, as in a cartridge, or in the bore of the barrel of a shotgun.
noun chokes · choak · choake · chock
- A control on a carburetor to adjust the air/fuel mixture when the engine is cold. Bond leapt for the Bentley, blessing the impulse which had made him drive it over after dinner. With the choke full out, the engine answered at once to the starter and the roar drowned the faltering words of the commissionaire who jumped aside as the rear wheels whipped gravel at his piped trouser-l
- In wrestling, karate (etc.), a type of hold that can result in strangulation.
- A constriction at the muzzle end of a shotgun barrel which affects the spread of the shot.
- A partial or complete blockage (of boulders, mud, etc.) in a cave passage.
- A choking coil.
- A major mistake at a crucial stage of a competition because one is nervous, especially when one is winning.
choke²
- /t͡ʃəʊk/ UK
- /t͡ʃoʊk/ US
Rhymes with -əʊk
Where it comes from
Back-formation from artichoke.
noun chokes
- The mass of immature florets in the centre of the bud of an artichoke. Once all the leaves are gone, a hairy little island will remain in the middle of the artichoke. This is the “choke.” A gentleman uses his knife and fork to slice it away, uncovering the delicious artichoke “heart” underneath.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: suffocate, gag, scrag, choke off, snuff it, croak, clog up, foul, drop dead, fret, pop off, back up, clog, congest, throttle, choking coil
Translations
Every language
verb be unable to breathe because of obstruction of the windpipe
| Español | sofocarse, ahogarse, atragantarse, atorarse, engolliparse, atarugarse |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 질식하다 jilsikhada |
| 日本語 | 窒息する chissoku suru, 噎せる museru |
| 中文 | 窒息 zhìxī, 嗆 /呛, 噎住 yēzhù, 呛 qiāng |
| Português | sufocar, afogar, engasgar |
| Français | suffoquer, s'étouffer |
| Deutsch | ersticken, verschlucken |
| Italiano | soffocare |
| Ελληνικά | ασφυκτιώ asfyktió, πνίγομαι pnígomai |
| Română | sufoca |
| Русский | задыха́ться zadyxátʹsja, задохну́ться zadoxnútʹsja, дави́ться davítʹsja, подави́ться podavítʹsja |
| Tiếng Việt | nghẹn, hóc |
| العربية | اِخْتَنَقَ iḵtanaqa |
| עברית | נחנק nikhnáq |
verb prevent someone from breathing by strangling them
| Español | estrangular, asfixiar, ahorcar, aforcar, enforcar (desus.), enhorcar (desus.) |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 질식시키다 jilsiksikida |
| 日本語 | 窒息させる chissoku saseru |
| 中文 | 使窒息 shǐ zhìxí |
| Português | estrangular, esganar, asfixiar, sufocar |
| Français | étouffer, juguler |
| Deutsch | würgen, ersticken |
| Italiano | strozzare, strangolare, asfissiare |
| Ελληνικά | πνίγω pnígo |
| Русский | души́ть dušítʹ, задуши́ть zadušítʹ, придуши́ть pridušítʹ, удуши́ть udušítʹ |
| Tiếng Việt | bóp cổ |
| العربية | خَنَقَ ḵanaqa |
| עברית | חָנַק khanáq |
verb to hinder growth of a plant especially as by weeds
| Deutsch | ersticken, unterdrücken |
|---|---|
| Ελληνικά | πνίγω pnígo |
verb perform badly at a competition despite appearing to be winning
| Español | cruzazulear |
|---|
noun control on a carburetor
| Español | estrangulador, cebador, ahogador |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 초크 chokeu |
| 日本語 | チョーク弁 chōkuben |
| Português | afogador |
| Français | starter |
| Deutsch | Choke, Drossel |
| Italiano | starter |
| Ελληνικά | τσοκ tsok, εμφράκτης emfráktis |
| Română | șoc |
| Русский | засло́нка zaslónka |
noun type of hold in wrestling etc.
| Español | estrangulamiento |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 목조 르기 mokjo reugi |
| Português | mata-leão |
| Français | mainmise |
| Deutsch | Würgegriff |
| Tiếng Việt | sự nắm cổ người nào |
noun constriction at a shotgun barrel
| Français | réduit |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | Würgebohrung |
| Ελληνικά | τσοκ tsok |
| Tiếng Việt | giảm |
noun blockage in cave passage
| Deutsch | Versturz |
|---|
noun choking coil
| Deutsch | Drosselspule, Drossel |
|---|
Talk about this word "choke." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/choke. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. choke. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/choke "choke." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/choke.
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@misc{choke_2026,
title = {choke},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/choke},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
