choke

Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
choke1

▶verb

• 1 prevent from breathing by constricting or obstructing the throat or depriving of air.

  ■ have difficulty in breathing because of an obstructed throat or lack of air.

• 2 fill (a space) so as to make movement difficult or impossible.

• 3 make (someone) speechless with strong emotion.

• 4 enrich the fuel mixture in (a petrol engine) by reducing the intake of air.

▶noun

• 1 a valve in the carburettor of a petrol engine used to reduce the amount of air in the fuel mixture.

• 2 a narrowed part of a shotgun bore serving to restrict the spread of the shot.

• 3 an inductance coil used to smooth the variations of an alternating current or to alter its phase.

– origin ME: from OE ācēocian (v.), from cēoce (see cheek).

Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
choke2

▶noun the inedible mass of silky fibres at the centre of a globe artichoke.

– origin C17: prob. a confusion of the ending of artichoke with choke1.