stifle

(stī'fəl)

v., -fled, -fling, -fles.

v.tr.

1. To interrupt or cut off (the voice, for example).
2. To keep in or hold back; repress: stifled my indignation.
3. To kill by preventing respiration; smother or suffocate.

v.intr.

1. To feel smothered or suffocated by or as if by close confinement in a stuffy room.
2. To die of suffocation.

[Middle English stifilen, alteration (influenced by Old Norse stīfla, to stop up) of stuffen, stuflen, to stifle, choke, drown, from Old French estoufer, of Germanic origin.]

stifler sti'fler n.

sti·fle² (stī'fəl)
n.
The joint of the hind leg analogous to the human knee in certain quadrupeds, such as the horse.

[Middle English, possibly from Old French estivel, pipe, leg, tibia, from Latin stīpes, stick.]

View more Literature & Language videos

verb

1. To hold (something requiring an outlet) in check: burke, choke (back), gag, hold back, hold down, hush (up), muffle, quench, repress, smother, squelch, strangle, suppress, throttle. Informal sit on (or upon). See restraint/unrestraint.
2. To decrease or dull the sound of: dampen, deaden, muffle, mute. See increase/decrease, sounds/pleasant sounds/unpleasant sounds/neutral sounds or silence.
3. To keep from being published or transmitted: ban, black out, censor, hush (up), suppress. Idioms: keepputa lid on. See show/hide.
4. To stop the breathing of: asphyxiate, choke, smother, suffocate. See breath/breathlessness.

v

Definition: prevent, restrain
Antonyms: encourage, help, let out, persuade

IN BRIEF: To kill by depriving of air; suffocate. Also: Hold back; suppress.

If [man] is not to stifle his human feelings, he must practice kindness towards animals, for he who is cruel to animals becomes hard also in his dealings with men. We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals. — Immanuel Kant (1724-1804)

LearnThatWord.com is a free vocabulary and spelling program where you only pay for results!

See words rhyming with "stifle."

  See crossword solutions for the clue Stifle.

Dansk (Danish)
1.
v. tr. - kvæle, undertrykke, overdøve
v. intr. - kvæles

2.
n. - knæled på hest

Nederlands (Dutch)
(ver)stikken, onderdrukken, gewricht in een paardenbeen

Français (French)
1.
v. tr. - étouffer, suffoquer
v. intr. - étouffer, suffoquer

2.
n. - (Anat) grasset

Deutsch (German)
1.
v. - ersticken, unterdrücken

2.
n. - Kniescheibe

Ελληνική (Greek)
v. - πνίγω, προκαλώ ασφυξία, καταπνίγω, καταστέλλω, προλαμβάνω εξέλιξη ή ξέσπασμα (κν. κουκουλώνω), ασφυκτιώ

Italiano (Italian)
soffocare

Português (Portuguese)
v. - sufocar

Русский (Russian)
удушение, удушье, душить, задыхаться, подавлять, тушить (огонь), заглушать, утаить

Español (Spanish)
1.
v. tr. - sofocar, ahogar, asfixiar
v. intr. - ahogarse

2.
n. - ahogo, sofocación, atmósfera sofocante, articulación en las patas de los caballos, perros y otros animales, equivalente a las rodillas en los humanos

Svenska (Swedish)
v. - kväva, undertrycka, döva (sitt samvete), kvävas

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
1. 使窒息, 抑制, 窒息, 受闷, 被扼杀, 被闷死, 受抑止, 受阻止

2. 后膝关节, 后膝关节病, 后膝骨病

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
1.
v. tr. - 使窒息, 抑制
v. intr. - 窒息, 受悶, 被扼殺, 被悶死, 受抑止, 受阻止

2.
n. - 後膝關節, 後膝關節病, 後膝骨病

한국어 (Korean)
1.
v. tr. - ~의 숨을 막다, 억누르다, (반란 등을) 진압하다
v. intr. - 숨이 가빠지다, 질식하다

2.
n. - 뒷무릎관절, 슬개골병

日本語 (Japanese)
v. - 息苦しくさせる, 窒息させる, 抑える, 妨げる

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(فعل) يخمد, يخنق, يكظم‏

עברית (Hebrew)
v. tr. - ‮חנק, דיכא, עצר, כבש, איפק‬
v. intr. - ‮נחנק‬
n. - ‮ברך אחורית (אצל סוסים, כלבים וחיות אחרות)‬

If you are unable to view some languages clearly, click here.

To select your translation preferences click here.