To strangle or choke someone by pressing on their throat.
From Old French 'estrangler', combining the prefix 'es-' (expressing intensity) with 'strangler' (to strangle). The word entered English in the 13th century but is now largely replaced by the simpler 'strangle'.
This word shows how English loves adding prefixes for emphasis—'estrangle' was trying to say 'really strangle'—but eventually we realized the prefix was unnecessary and just kept the root.
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