The act of being unable to breathe, usually because air is blocked or removed, which can cause death.
From Latin 'suffocare,' meaning to choke, combining 'sub-' (under) and 'faux' (throat/pharynx). The term literally means blocking the throat from below.
Ancient Romans were so familiar with suffocation as a method of execution that they had a specific legal term for it—'suffocare'—which tells you a lot about what kinds of dangers they dealt with in crowded, poorly ventilated cities.
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