choke

Meanings

To be unable to breathe because of obstruction of the windpipe (for instance food or other objects that go down the wrong way, or fumes or particles in the air that cause the throat to constrict).
To prevent (someone) from breathing or talking by strangling or filling the windpipe.
To obstruct (a passage, etc.) by filling it up or clogging it.
To hinder or check, as growth, expansion, progress, etc.; to kill (a plant by robbing it of nutrients); to extinguish (fire by robbing it of oxygen).
To perform badly at a crucial stage of a competition, especially when one appears to be clearly winning.
2021 "The Milwaukee Brewers choked in the playoffs"
To move one's fingers very close to the tip of a pencil, brush or other art tool.
To be checked or stopped, as if by choking
To check or stop (an utterance or voice) as if by choking.
To have a feeling of strangulation in one's throat as a result of passion or strong emotion.
To give (someone) a feeling of strangulation as a result of passion or strong emotion.
To say (something) with one’s throat constricted (due to emotion, for example).
To use the choke valve of (a vehicle) to adjust the air/fuel mixture in the engine.
To reach a condition of maximum flowrate, due to the flow at the narrowest point of the duct becoming sonic (Ma = 1).
To make a choke, as in a cartridge, or in the bore of the barrel of a shotgun.

A control on a carburetor to adjust the air/fuel mixture when the engine is cold.
In wrestling, karate (etc.), a type of hold that can result in strangulation.
A constriction at the muzzle end of a shotgun barrel which affects the spread of the shot.
A partial or complete blockage (of boulders, mud, etc.) in a cave passage.
choking coil
A major mistake at a crucial stage of a competition because one is nervous, especially when one is winning.
The mass of immature florets in the centre of the bud of an artichoke.

From Middle English choken (also cheken), from Old English ċēocian, āċēocian, probably derived from Old English ċēoce, ċēace, see cheek. Cognate with Icelandic kok ("throat"), koka. See also achoke.

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