noun, verb ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun

1. 1
   A grappling hold around a person's neck, especially one in which the neck is grasped tightly from behind with an arm, cutting off the flow of blood to the brain and restricting breathing.

   "He put his opponent in a chokehold."

2. 2
   a restraining hold; someone loops the arm around the neck of another person in a tight grip, usually from behind wordnet
3. 3
   A powerful and restrictive control or influence over something. figuratively

   "One country has a chokehold on another country's economy."

4. 4
   complete power over a person or situation wordnet

Verb

1. 1
   To put a hold around the neck of (someone), especially one in which the neck is grasped tightly from behind with an arm. transitive

Synonyms

All synonyms

strangleholdthrottleholdchoke holdneckholdstranglehold

Example

More examples

"The policeman put him in a chokehold."

Etymology

The noun is derived from choke (verb) + hold (noun). The verb is derived from the noun.

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.