Noah Webster's New International Dictionary of the English Language

1. (v. t.) To compress the windpipe of (a person or animal) until death results from stoppage of respiration; to choke to death by compressing the throat, as with the hand or a rope.

2. (v. t.) To stifle, choke, or suffocate in any manner.

3. (v. t.) To hinder from appearance; to stifle; to suppress.

4. (v. i.) To be strangled, or suffocated.