to kill by squeezing the throat, or to suppress or restrict something from developing.
From Old English 'strangulian,' derived from Latin 'strangulare.' The Latin root may come from Greek 'strangx' meaning 'to twist tight.' First appears in English around the 1300s.
The word traveled from Greek to Latin to English, carrying the image of 'twisting tight' through 2,000 years of language evolution. It's now used metaphorically—like 'strangled creativity'—showing how violent words become gentler.
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