All 3 Uses of
stifle
in
Anne Frank, the Diary of a Young Girl
- Mother can barely stifle a laugh, and I stare straight ahead.
Chpt 43-08 (definition 1) *stifle = suppress (prevent)
- The atmosphere is stifling, sluggish, leaden.
Chpt 43-10 (definition 2) *stifling = (figuratively) making breathing difficult
- All I see around me are dissatisfied and grumpy faces, all I hear are sighs and stifled complaints.
Chpt 44-04 (definition 1)stifled = suppressed (prevented from continuing to develop)
Definitions:
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(1) (stifle as in: stifling the urge) to suppress (prevent something or decrease its development) -- often political freedom
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(2) (stifle as in: the heat is stifling) to make breathing difficult or impossible -- often from heat or humidity