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CHOKING
| Pronunciation (US): |  | (GB): | |
I. (noun)
Sense 1
Meaning:
The act of suffocating (someone) by constricting the windpipe
Example:
no evidence that the choking was done by the accused
Synonyms:
choking; strangling; strangulation; throttling
Classified under:
Nouns denoting acts or actions
Hypernyms ("choking" is a kind of...):
asphyxiation; suffocation (killing by depriving of oxygen)
Derivation:
choke (constrict (someone's) throat and keep from breathing)
choke (wring the neck of)
Sense 2
Meaning:
A condition caused by blocking the airways to the lungs (as with food or swelling of the larynx)
Classified under:
Nouns denoting stable states of affairs
Hypernyms ("choking" is a kind of...):
disorder; upset (a physical condition in which there is a disturbance of normal functioning)
Derivation:
choke (breathe with great difficulty, as when experiencing a strong emotion)
choke (struggle for breath; have insufficient oxygen intake)
choke (impair the respiration of or obstruct the air passage of)
II. (verb)
Sense 1
-ing form of the verb choke
Context examples:
Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAMA) Respiratory symptoms; pressure or constriction in chest, choking feelings, sighing, dyspnea.
(HAMA - Respiratory Symptoms, NCI Thesaurus)
He heard a snuffle behind him—a half-choking gasp or cough.
(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)
The fact is that I felt as though I were choking, and had a perfect longing for a breath of fresh air.
(The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is for people whose hearts or breathing has stopped and the Heimlich maneuver is for people who are choking.
(First Aid, NIH)
Many rooms opened out of this, and we wandered from one to the other—the kitchens, the still-room, the morning-room, the dining-room, all filled with the same choking smell of dust and of mildew.
(Rodney Stone, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
And my remembrance of them both, choking me, I broke down as I was trying to say that her home was my home, and that all she had was mine, and that I would have gone to her for shelter, but for her humble station, which made me fear that I might bring some trouble on her—I broke down, I say, as I was trying to say so, and laid my face in my hands upon the table.
(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)
Symptoms experienced during a panic attack include dyspnea or sensations of being smothered; dizziness, loss of balance or faintness; choking sensations; palpitations or accelerated heart rate; shakiness; sweating; nausea or other form of abdominal distress; depersonalization or derealization; paresthesias; hot flashes or chills; chest discomfort or pain; fear of dying and fear of not being in control of oneself or going crazy.
(Panic Disorder, NLM, Medical Subject Headings)
Don't stop to quirk your little finger and simper over your plate, Amy, cried Jo, choking on her tea and dropping her bread, butter side down, on the carpet in her haste to get at the treat.
(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)
The thick, warm air of the conservatory and the rich, choking fragrance of exotic plants took us by the throat.
(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
When someone is choking, quick action can be lifesaving.
(Choking, NIH)
