Definitions of suffocate:

• verb:   be asphyxiated; die from lack of oxygen

  Example: "The child suffocated under the pillow"

• verb:   suppress the development, creativity, or imagination of

  Example: "His job suffocated him"

• verb:   become stultified, suppressed, or stifled
• verb:   feel uncomfortable for lack of fresh air
• verb:   impair the respiration of or obstruct the air passage of
• verb:   deprive of oxygen and prevent from breathing

  Example: "The child suffocated herself with a plastic bag that the parents had left on the floor"

• verb:   struggle for breath; have insufficient oxygen intake