asphyxiate

From asphyxia +‎ -ate.

• IPA^(key): /əsˈfɪksieɪt/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

asphyxiate (third-person singular simple present asphyxiates, present participle asphyxiating, simple past and past participle asphyxiated)

1. (transitive) To smother or suffocate someone.
   • 2024 October 14, Issy Ronald, “Woman killed by malfunctioning ottoman bed”, in CNN‎^[1]:

     A 39-year-old British woman was killed when a malfunctioning ottoman bed fell on her neck and asphyxiated her, a coroner’s report said.

2. (intransitive) To be smothered or suffocated.