Both Uses of
stifle
in
A Wrinkle in Time
- A large gray rat scuttled around the corner of the house and Meg let out a stifled shriek.
p. 41.6 *stifled = suppressed (prevented from continuing to develop)
- She looked wildly up and down the street, saw the children and put her hand to her mouth as though to stifle a scream, grabbed the little boy and rushed indoors with him.
p. 117.2stifle = suppress (prevent)
Definitions:
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(1)
(stifle as in: stifling the urge) to suppress (prevent something or decrease its development) -- often political freedom
-
(2)
(stifle as in: the heat is stifling) to make breathing difficult or impossible -- often from heat or humidity
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(3)
(meaning too rare to warrant focus) meaning too rare to warrant focus:
Much more rarely, to stifle is used in the context of anatomy to refer to a four-legged animal's equivalent of the human knee (the joint between the upper and lower leg).