mindmap root((窒息)) suffocate is likely to imply the impossibility of breathing because of the absence of oxygen, the presence of noxious gases, or interference with passage of air to and from the lungs: ~ing under the sand which had fallen upon him. asphyxiate is likely to refer to situations involving death through lack of oxygen or presence of toxic gas: several people were ~d by calorine escaping from the wrecked train. stifle is appropriately used to refer to situations where breathing is difficult or impossible because of inadequate fresh air: the room's ~ing atmosphere. smother is usable in situations in which the supply of oxygen is or seems inadequate for life and often suggests a deadening pall of smoke, dust, or impurities in the air: ~ed by a blanket of volcano ash. choke suggests positive interference with breathing, for example by compression, obstruction, or severe inflammation of the throat: ~ on a bit of apple. strangle similar to choke, more consistently implies a serious or fatal interference: ~d to death by the assailant.