The Oxford Thesaurus An A-Z Dictionary of Synonyms - choke v.

1) suffocate, asphyxiate, smother, stifle, strangle, throttle, garrotte or garrote or garotte, burke: He choked his elderly victims, then stole their money. 2) stop, fill (up) , block (up) , obstruct, congest, clog, dam (up) , constrict: The channel is completely choked with weeds. 3) Also, choke off. smother, suppress, stifle, prohibit, frustrate, deny, obviate, cut off, stop, put a stop to; dissuade, discourage: His policies choked off any chance for innovation. 4) choke back or down. suppress, repress, stifle, restrain: He choked back the tears when he saw the gravestone.