[
US
/ˈstaɪfəɫ/
]
[ UK /stˈaɪfəl/ ]
[ UK /stˈaɪfəl/ ]
NOUN
- joint between the femur and tibia in a quadruped; corresponds to the human knee
VERB
-
suppress or constrain so as to lessen in intensity
Stifle your curiosity -
be asphyxiated; die from lack of oxygen
The child suffocated under the pillow -
impair the respiration of or obstruct the air passage of
The foul air was slowly suffocating the children -
suppress in order to conceal or hide
strangle a laugh
smother a yawn
muffle one's anger
repress a cry of fear
How To Use stifle In A Sentence
- There is no doubt that unnecessary complexity can stifle growth. Times, Sunday Times
- Demand is down across the globe as the economic woes continue to stifle growth. The Sun
- Victor heard her stifle a cry as he held a small mirror for her.
- They stifle growth and offer no realistic prospect of a recovery. Times, Sunday Times
- Dressing up simple ideas stifles them; rewrapping non-ideas confuses your audience and eventually kills their trust in you.
- Still the visitors pressed, but a spirited start to the second half was soon stifled.
- Too strict a regulatory system will stifle innovation.
- Some news staff are already worrying that the Neil review will stifle challenging reporting.
- She posits that the gendering of the marketing ultimately stifles creativity and impoverishes the fan culture, if any, of the novel. Archive 2009-04-01
- Look you," he said in stifled gutturals, turning to St. Vincent. CHAPTER 22