stifled
part of speech
adjective (stifled); past form of the verb stifle (stifle, stifles, stifled, stifling)
meaning for a pupil
1) Held back so it is not heard or seen: a stifled laugh, a stifled yawn, a stifled cry. tree →
2) Unable to breathe well because the air is hot or stuffy. tree →
3) Stopped from growing or being free: stifled ideas. tree →
sense in the lessons
A feelings and sound word in stories: a stifled giggle in class tells the reader someone is trying not to laugh. In Alice in Wonderland the guinea pigs in court are «suppressed» — stuffed into a bag — for cheering. In science and health, stifling heat makes breathing hard. Safety: never cover someone's nose and mouth.
examples
- She gave a stifled giggle during the assembly. tree →
- I heard a stifled cry from the cupboard. tree →
- He stifled a yawn as the speech went on. tree →
- We felt stifled in the hot, crowded bus. tree →
- A stifled sob came from the next room. tree →
- Too many rules stifled their ideas. tree →
- At intervals, a half-stifled sigh was heard from its inmost soul; it was the soul of Helga. tree →
note
«Stifled» is the past form and an adjective; «stifling» means very hot and stuffy (a stifling day). Regular verb.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «stifled» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.