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- DictionarySti·fle/ˈstīf(ə)l/
verb
- 1. make (someone) unable to breathe properly; suffocate: "those in the streets were stifled by the fumes"
- 2. restrain (a reaction) or stop oneself acting on (an emotion): "she stifled a giggle"
verb (used with object) , sti·fled, sti·fling. to quell, crush, or end by force: to stifle free expression. to stifle a revolt; to stifle free expression. Synonyms: preclude, prevent, put down. Antonyms: encourage. to suppress, curb, or withhold: to stifle a yawn.
To stifle is to cut off, hold back, or smother. You may stifle your cough if you don't want to interrupt a lecture or you may stifle the competition if you fear losing. The verb stifle means “to choke, suffocate, drown.” It can describe a claustrophobic feeling, like getting smothered by kisses from your great aunt.
[transitive] stifle something to prevent something from happening; to prevent a feeling from being expressed synonym suppress. She managed to stifle a yawn. They hope the new rules will not stifle creativity. The government failed to stifle the unrest. She pressed her hand against her mouth to stifle her sobs.
1. To interrupt or cut off (the voice, for example). 2. To keep in or hold back; repress: stifled my indignation. 3. To kill by preventing respiration; smother or suffocate. [Middle English stifilen, alteration (influenced by Old Norse stīfla, to stop up) of stuffen, stuflen, to stifle, choke, drown, from Old French estoufer, of Germanic origin .]
2 days ago · 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. (transitive) to crush or stamp out. Collins English Dictionary.
to quell, crush, or end by force: to stifle a revolt; to stifle free expression. to suppress, curb, or withhold: to stifle a yawn. to kill by impeding respiration; smother .
May 16, 2024 · The verb is derived from Late Middle English stuflen (“to have difficulty breathing due to heat, stifle; to suffocate by drowning, drown”) [and other forms]; [1] further etymology uncertain, perhaps from stuffen (“to kill by suffocation; to stifle from heat; to extinguish, suppress (body heat, breath, humour, etc.); to deprive a plant of the con...
