suffocation
Asphyxia—a condition in which an extreme decrease in the concentration of oxygen in the body accompanied by an increase in the concentration of carbon dioxide leads to loss of consciousness or death.
Example
“A child left unattended may die of suffocation.”
Other meanings
A particular act of death or killing by means of asphyxia.
“The coroner reported three suffocations last week.”
Related words
- suffocation mate
Word history
From Latin "suffocatio".
Where this comes from
This definition is adapted from “suffocation” on Wiktionary, by its contributors, published under CC BY-SA 4.0. This page is published under the same licence.